As part of our ongoing series of board member spotlights, we are pleased to introduce Gene Lynch, who has been a board member since 2008.
Q: What is your background or history with BRC that led or drew you to become a board member?
A: I was lucky enough to marry Leslie Hollern in 1986 in Bend and having visited over the past 40 years have seen the positive and significant impact Mike and Sue Hollern and the rest of the Brooks Resources team have had on the Bend community. After 22 years of seeing my interest in Brooks, Mike asked me to join the Board of Brooks Resources in 2008 and I was honored to accept the role.
Q: What do you hope you will help BRC achieve in the next 5 years?
A: Brooks Resources has been a fantastic steward of resources to its stakeholders – the Bend community, its employees, its partners and its shareholders, and I know we’ll continue that legacy.
Q: What do you imagine Bend would be like today if Brooks were not such a key contributor to the local development landscape?
A: I remember Mike arm wrestling with ODOT (Oregon Department of Transportation) almost 30 years ago to install Bend’s first roundabout and it was a very heavy lift. Now there are 50. Without Mike Hollern’s vision, persistence and cajoling can you imagine all the traffic lights and accidents and car idling Bend would have experienced over the last three decades?
Q: Do you serve on any other boards or are involved with any other organizations?
A: I am a member of the Board of Trustees at Phillips Exeter Academy, the boarding school in New Hampshire I attended as a scholarship student. I also serve as a Trustee for the Rye, NY YMCA.
Q: Please tell us a bit about your professional and personal background.
A: I manage the family office for the senior partners of a private equity firm in NY that is focused on global growth investing. My parents were Irish immigrants and I’m the first member of my family to attend college. Leslie and I met in college, married three years after graduation, and have four children – Conor, Kerry, Dylan and Mallory. The boys live on the West Coast and the girls in NYC. Our son Dylan is a 7th grade teacher in Portland, his wife Ellie works at Nike and our granddaughter is a born and bred Oregonian. Family gatherings in Bend in August and December are highlights for the Lynch, Hollern and Kelly families every year. In fact, our daughter (from NYC) was engaged on the footbridge this summer.
Q: What is your favorite way to enjoy your time off from season to season?
A: My love for the game of golf exceeds my capability, so I enjoy that pastime when I can. Traveling to visit family in Chicago, California and Oregon tends to fill the balance with occasional trips with family and friends to see the world.
Q: What has been your greatest takeaway or learning from your time serving on the Brooks board?
A: Someone once said the only thing that is constant is change. I’ve been fortunate to see the growth of Bend since the ‘80s and making sure we have the right people in place to navigate the changes in the city of Bend and its various markets has been extraordinary. The “Camp Brooks” team is like no other! In addition, partnering with like-minded families – the Taylors, Tennants and Millers, has made a huge difference in the development of Brooks Resources. Finally, participating with a Board of Directors with a diverse set of backgrounds and experiences has led to good decision making and process.
