Born in Bandon, Co. Cork, MacDara Lynch having graduated from University College Cork with a B.Sc. in chemistry in 1972, joined Pfizer, the first major pharmaceutical companies to locate in Ireland (1969).

Over the last 40 years, Pfizer has a rich heritage of innovation and expansion in Ireland – eight locations based in Cork, Dublin, and Kildare with over 4,000 employees – and MacDara was part of that expansion. From his initial job as a shift supervisor, he served in leading positions in many countries with the company. Wherever he and his late wife Ita found themselves, they became active in the local Irish community. MacDara served as Honorary Irish Consul in Indonesia for two years.

Having retired from Pfizer in 2012, MacDara is currently an active member of the board of directors of the Ireland-U.S. Council, which builds ties  between Ireland, and the U.S., and Cooperation Ireland, which promotes positive relationships between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. He will also be on forthcoming pharmaceutical advisory board for Enterprise Ireland, the government organization responsible for the development and growth of Irish enterprises in world markets.

MacDara lives in Connecticut where he enjoys spending time with his three children and four grandchildren. He says being Irish “helps to refocus me on what is really important in life.”