Evelyn McGlynn: From family farm to Donegal Giving, a positive force for change

Ballybofey woman Evelyn McGlynn truly embodies the idea that life is about the journey, not the destination. An esteemed entrepreneur and marketing specialist, she is excited to share her latest initiative, Donegal Giving.

So where did it all begin?

“I grew up on a farm in Ballybofey,” says Evelyn. “It was a good upbringing, with a strong work ethic from summers in the bog and hay. I loved reading Enid Blyton books and the sense of adventure that came with them.”

After attending a home economics college in Mayo, Evelyn began her career at Kee’s Hotel in Stranorlar.

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“In hospitality, you learn skills of communication, negotiation, empathy, connecting and making people feel that they're of value,” she says. “You are all the time learning from people older than you, taking cues from them.”

Evelyn married at 23 and had three children, spending time in Galway, Manchester, and then Kildare. She was a stay-at-home mum for 20 years, a time she says benefited her immensely in her marketing career. In helping to set up the first parent and toddler group in Newbridge, and contributing to the local community on various committees, Evelyn developed skills in leadership, funding applications, PR, and more.

Upon returning to Donegal in 1998, she stumbled into marketing almost by chance.

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“Greene’s Shoes were looking for somebody to write copy,” recalls Evelyn. “If the word marketing had been mentioned, I wouldn't have rang!”

Tapping into skills amassed during her parenting years, Evelyn was soon well on her way to establishing herself as the highly regarded Evelyn McMarketing. She is gracious in her acknowledgement of the role models she learned from along the way - those in Kee’s Hotel, Alfie Greene of Greene’s Shoes, her Donegal Women in Business Network colleagues Deirdre McGlone, Trish McGinley, Jo Daly, Larissa Feeney and more. Evelyn is particularly grateful that many clients came to her because of a recommendation, and she always tries to give back by meaningfully supporting others.

The Covid-19 pandemic brought everything to a halt, but ever pro-active, Evelyn came up with an online initiative, hosting a weekly Zoom called Let’s Meet For a Coffee.

“Over that period of 40 weeks, about 2,000 people attended,” she says. “Each week, participants would introduce themselves and I would have somebody on to share a particular skill, so we were all learning while strengthening our networks.

Post Covid, Evelyn felt a growing desire to obtain a formal qualification. She stumbled upon Equal Ireland which helps people obtain a third level qualification, and crucially, she became aware of Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL).

“I got to do my online Level 7 in Business, Social Entreprise and Community Development in one year, and my Level 8 the following year due to RPL,” says Evelyn. “All the experience I had with my clients, setting up the parent and toddler group, writing and publishing six books, with Let’s Meet For A Coffee, it was all validated with RPL. Suddenly I had a qualification, and it was like, ‘Wow! Did that really happen?’

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Life is coming full circle for Evelyn with her newest project.

“Maya Angelou says, ‘Your legacy is every life you touch’ and I love that idea that you never know how you are going to affect somebody, and how they are going to affect you or anyone else,” says Evelyn.

“So I came up with Donegal Living, a county-wide non-profit platform for building a culture of knowledge, giving and opportunity.”

It could be business mentorship, or simply sharing knowledge, eg, how to make brown bread, all with the aim of creating an inclusive ‘giving’ culture.

“When we’re told to walk 10,000 steps or eat five fruit and veg daily, that’s a marketing department shaping a culture,” says Evelyn. “Donegal Giving is about creating a culture of giving.”

This ground-breaking initiative is live at Donegalgiving.com having been launched at an uplifting and inspiring event in An Grianan on November 6. 

This feature appeared in Donegal Life magazine earlier this year. The current issue is in shops now, packed with a fantastic selection of local interviews, travel, food and drink, entertainment and more.