The English word magnanimous blossomed from the Latin root "magna anima", which means "great souled". The magna anima series on jcusports.com seeks to highlight great souls of John Carroll Athletics both past and present. Chapter 3 will focus on former John Carroll student athletes who have pursued the path of entrepreneurship.
There is mantra in the world of running about getting stronger and stronger by the mile.
With her ascent in the field of public relations, Molly (Lynch) Leonard is showing that this mantra can be applied to life as well.
A four-year letterwinner for the JCU cross country team from 1997-2000, Molly grew up within a close-knit family in the suburbs of Chicago. She was one of five girls who remain close to this day, even naming one of her daughters after her sister.
She grew up in a family of runners and had run her whole life. The competitive aspect of running began on the last day of the fifth grade and has yet to stop.
When looking at colleges, Molly looked specifically at Catholic Universities. She wanted to get away from home, and was lucky enough to have her sister (and best friend) already at John Carroll. Knowing she wanted to keep running competitively, but also knowing she was not Division I caliber, John Carroll seemed a logical choice.
Molly and the 1999
JCU women's cross country team
"I loved the people on the team I met and the campus too," recalled Leonard. "It felt to me like a college campus, but with the benefits of Cleveland so close by, it was so much more than that."
Molly ran cross country at John Carroll, where she made some of her best college memories. She became captain of the team her junior year. She enjoyed being a team leader, even when she was not the first to ever cross the finish line.
In addition to running commitments, Molly sought activities outside of her sport. She got involved in Greek Life and JCTV among many other things.
Molly jumped into the academic aspects of the college experience as well, becoming a Communications Major on an Integrated Marketing Track, which she was drawn to due to her father's experience in Advertising. She knew she had wanted to go into Advertising or Broadcasting and had even had broadcasting internships before college. On top of everything else she was doing, she managed to have five different jobs during her college days.
"I needed to learn how to manage time because it is a skill I would need for the rest of my life," said Leonard. "I learned to find balance and understood that being busy means spending some nights alone, but when meets shortened my weekends, I took all the time I could to balance my responsibilities and a social life."
After graduation, Molly began working for Publicis Groupe out of Chicago. She was at her job at Publicis for five years, which she loved until the end, but found herself lost in what she was supposed to be doing.
Molly with JCU alums
Susie Kovass ('01) & Carrie North ('00)
"One day I quit my job, and no one believed I was serious," Leonard said, "I took a week-long vacation, recharged my batteries, and then decided I was going to open my own firm.
That is when Lynch Group Communications was born.
"I started Lynch Communications Group in 2007 and it was an interesting intersection when social media was just starting to get popular for brands to adopt into their marketing plans," Leonard said. "At the same time, the next financial crisis soon hit and many marketers didn't have the budget for big agencies, but we were the perfect solution. I had big agency experience coupled with the tenacity of a small agency."
One of Molly's first clients was Young Rembrandts, an art franchise, which is still one of her largest to this day.
"I was an entrepreneur before that was a buzz word," Leonard said. And she loved it. She said she got there, though, "with a lot of blessings and luck".
Since then, the Lynch Group has continued to grow, as has Molly. In 2012. she married Jay Leonard, and the couple has welcomed two daughters into the world -- Ginny (4 1/2 years old) and Kelly (2 1/2 years old).
Molly has also found time to branch out into academia. She now teaches at DePaul University in Chicago and continues to give students the same opportunities she was given in the world of jobs and internships. She also believes the bread and butter of public relations is writing and pitching media, and anyone considering the field should enjoy both.
Molly and her dog Riley
"I can't hire someone who's not a strong writer," said Leonard.
She also continues to run. She runs before her kids get up for school and has been able to run the Chicago Marathon as well as 20 or 25 other half-marathons.
Molly said her success came from a mixture of herself and her John Carroll experience.
"John Carroll has a great foundation or support for all its students," said Leonard. "Dr. (Peggy) Finucane is such a supportive person and is really a good professor, but mainly she cares about students. I was able to learn from her, but also, the liberal arts education. You're around people who share similar values is very important. The rest was hard work. Hard work is a huge factor of being a small-business owner. Hard work and grit really play into the success I have had."
Molly's words of advice are this: "Throughout your career you need to find a purpose. Maybe it is not a mission-driven purpose, maybe you're not making a huge difference, but it does make a big difference in your world."
