Catholic priest and social justice campaigner Father Bob Maguire has been remembered by family, fellow activists, politicians and people from all walks of life as a friend of the poor and downtrodden.
Fr Bob died in his beloved Melbourne on Wednesday morning, aged 88.
His family described him as a "dear and much loved member of our family" who will be "sorely missed for his energy and good humour".
"Fr Bob was not just a much loved family member but was loved by all Australians for what he stood for," they said in a statement.
"He has fought bravely for the underprivileged and homeless all his life. He represented the highest of principles, and he fought to actively live those principles."
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese described Fr Bob as a "great Australian".
"An irrepressibly cheerful champion for all those battling disadvantage, he dedicated his life to brightening the lives of those most in need," the prime minister said on Twitter.
"A man of warmth and faith who faced struggles with a cheeky grin. May he rest in peace."
Melbourne identity Eddie McGuire said he first met Fr Bob as a 13-year-old schoolboy, when the priest served as a chaplain at McGuire's school.
McGuire later found out that Fr Bob had funded the scholarship that allowed the working class boy from Broadmeadows to attend the eastern suburbs Catholic college.
"I loved him dearly. He was a great man," McGuire told ABC Radio Melbourne.
"He had his moments, like we all do but, ultimately, it was his understanding of giving to the community that set the scene for the whole of Melbourne to understand that you had to reach out, not just take all the time.
"Early on, you realised that you had the sense you had to give back to the community, not because Bob put it over your head that that's what you had to do, you just realised.
"He imbued what he believed to be his religion, not the pomp and circumstance of it, he really imbued the sense of what he believed Jesus was about, that you gave everything, that you stood with the sinners, that you looked after people."
The Collingwood Football Club, which Fr Bob had long supported, said its sincere condolences were with the late priest's family and friends.
"Fr Bob first became known for his work with disadvantaged people in his South Melbourne parish, and his commitment to feeding and housing the hungry and homeless of Melbourne," the statement read.
The club described him as "a man who committed himself to a life of faith and stood up for those most vulnerable".
Comedian and longtime friend of Fr Bob, Marty Fields, said the priest was a "warrior" who believed in the power of the church to do good.
"Anyone who put out a hand to Fr Bob always got it back with something in it," he said.
Satirist and documentary-maker John Safran came to know Fr Bob when the unlikely couple collaborated on radio and TV shows tackling religion, morality and numerous other subjects.
Safran said on Wednesday that Fr Bob was even funnier and kinder in private than he was in public, and was as "wise as Buddha".
"He attracted all manner of outcasts, not all pleasant, but he was open-hearted to those people, too," Safran explained.
"I asked him how did this, and he said: 'You don't have to like people to love them'.
"When filming, it was an editor's nightmare to cut from the shot before I'd burst out laughing, each time Bob finished a sentence.
"I never thought Bob would ever stop making me laugh, but with the sad news of today, he finally has."
The 'larrikin priest' remembered
Fr Bob's biographer, Sue Williams, told ABC Radio Melbourne that his selflessness and humour would be sorely missed.
"We've lost a huge man really — one of Australia's kind of greatest humanists, I think," she said.
"I mean, I've never met anyone like him in my life and I don't think I ever will again. But he was a man [who] was just so generous with his love and affection."
Fr Bob was parish priest of Sts Peter and Paul's Catholic Church in South Melbourne for close to 40 years from 1973, leaving only after a clash with Catholic Church hierarchy over its mandate that priests retire at 75.
Catholic Archbishop of Melbourne Peter Comensoli said Fr Bob was ordained in 1960 and was "a fierce friend of the downhearted, the broken and the lost" in the 60 years since.
"Without a doubt, he was the 'larrikin priest', who had a great love for Jesus, who also lived with the outcast and the unloved," Archbishop Comensoli said.
"Recent months have been a struggle for Bob, in both health and relationships. We pray that he is now at peace with his Saviour and Lord."
Fr Bob's charity work and public advocacy continued in the years after he left the church, especially in Melbourne's inner south-east.
"He taught so many people, not just in this local area where he lived and worked, but right across Australia, because he had a great presence," said Frank O'Connor from the Father Bob Maguire Foundation.
Political leaders hail 'social justice warrior'
Daniel Andrews was among the politicians who paid tribute to Fr Bob's generosity, which the premier noted "wasn't confined to the walls of his church".
A spokesperson for the government said it had reached out to Fr Bob's family and foundation to ask about the best way to mark his legacy.
Federal minister Bill Shorten said he first met Fr Bob in 1983 during a school social work program, where he "spent a week with him, seeing how he helped kids on the street".
"God Bless, Fr Bob. I’m sure heaven has its gates wide open for you, but goodness knows they are in for a ride," Mr Shorten said.
Former Labor minister Martin Foley was the member for Albert Park, where Fr Bob carried out much of his charitable work.
Mr Foley said on Wednesday that Fr Bob's death was a blow to the "unlovables", who he had helped and comforted throughout the decades.
NSW Premier Chris Minns said the country had just lost a hero.
"The people's priest. A social justice warrior. And a man who dedicated his life to faith and standing up for those most vulnerable," he said.
