Meet the Board

Martina Kelly
President

Martina was appointed President of Down Syndrome Ireland in 2025, after serving as a board director since 2023. Martina is a retired Civil Servant with a broad range of experience in the educational sector, including as a secondary school Principal. She is also a workplace mediator. Martina is a parent of an adult with Down syndrome. 

Margaret Quane
Secretary

Margaret is a Human Resources professional and has built up a particular specialism in learning and development roles and, more recently, in career and executive coaching. Since 2021, Margaret has run her own coaching business. Margaret is based in Cork and has a family member with Down syndrome.

Colm Fortune

Treasurer

Colm is a qualified accountant who recently finished over thirty years service in a leading software technology company in Dublin, where he built specialism in resource prioritisation, new business enablement and corporate long range planning. Colm is a past director of the Irish Association of Pension funds, a not for profit organisation with a focus on pension advocacy. Colm is based in Leixlip and has a family member with Down syndrome.

Garry Doyle
Director

Garry is an accomplished Managing Director and Board Member with nearly 30 years of expertise in the retail and utilities sectors. Holding senior roles in sales, operations, and commercial management in some of Ireland’s best known companies, Garry has a proven track record in leadership, people management and achieving financial targets. Garry is based in Co. Wicklow.

Chiara is a Speech and Language Therapist with extensive clinical and leadership experience across community and hospital healthcare services in Ireland. She is also the mother of an adult daughter with Down syndrome, an experience that has greatly informed both her personal and professional perspective on disability, communication, and inclusion.

Chiara has been practising as a Speech and Language Therapist since 2009 and currently works within the public health sector. Prior to entering the profession, she worked in the commercial insurance industry.

She holds a BA from University College Cork, an MSc in Speech & Language Therapy from University of Limerick, and an MSc in Applied Psychology of Intellectual Disability from University of Portsmouth. Chiara is a member of The Irish Association of Speech & Language Therapists and currently serves on the CORU Speech and Language Therapists Registration Board.

Karin Lanigan
Director

Karin has over 20 years executive level experience in operations and customer relationship management, strategy development and implementation, as well as in the areas of learning and development, recruitment, career coaching and employability support. She has over 17 years’ experience working in a membership organisation. She is an enthusiastic ED&I advocate and has been involved in leading the delivery of a wide range of events, activities and initiatives to help increase awareness and drive change.

Máire Neary
Director

Máire is a solicitor and currently the Vice President of People and Legal at the Irish founded tech unicorn, Flipdish. Her background spans legal, governance, HR, hiring and wider company operations. Máire is an existing Non-Executive Director and Charity Trustee of Vision Sports Ireland and has a twin brother who has Down syndrome. From Sligo, Máire is currently based in Dublin. 

Wayne O’Connor
Director

Wayne is a qualified accountant and is a senior member of a leading, global management consulting organisation. Wayne has a long running relationship with Down Syndrome Ireland and more recently has worked closely with the leadership team to support a number of key initiatives including ministerial engagement, training, planning and the Purple Run. Wayne is based in Dublin and has a family member with Down syndrome. 

Paul Radford
Director

Paul has served in various committee roles and as Chair of the Louth/Meath branch of Down Syndrome Ireland. Paul is a National Service Manager with a large automotive group.

Martyn Rosney
Director

Martyn is a Partner at Reputation Inc, a leading international consultancy with a focus on corporate and organisational reputation management across various sectors and geographies. His expertise areas include strategic issues and crisis advice, stakeholder engagement and corporate leadership advisory. Martyn is the Country Lead for Ireland with the European Association of Communications Directors and a Fellow of the Public Relations Institute of Ireland. From Kerry, Martyn is based in Dublin.