OAK BROOK, Ill. -- Jack Daly, senior vice president of corporate relations and chief communications officer for McDonald's Corp., died on February 5 after a battle with cancer. He was 62. Daly was responsible for McDonald's global communications, which includes media relations, marketing communications, public relations, education initiatives, internal communications and government relations.
Daly joined McDonald's in 1992 with extensive experience in the communications and quick-service restaurant industries. From 1974 to 1976 and 1980 to 1981, he was press secretary [image-nocss] for the governor of Ohio. From 1976 to 1979, he accepted a research fellowship at the Annenberg School of Communications at the University of Pennsylvania. At the same time, he worked as a sports writer for The Philadelphia Inquirer.
In 1981, he joined the Hammeroff & Milenthal advertising agency in Columbus, Ohio, as vice president of public affairs. He founded his own public relations agency, J. Daly & Associates, in 1983 and continued as managing director of the public relations division when it was acquired by Fahlgren & Martin in 1986.
In 1987, Daly joined Golin/Harris Communications in Chicago as vice president on the agency's national McDonald's account. He was promoted to senior vice president in 1988 and executive vice president and deputy general manager of the Chicago office in 1990. In 1991, he joined Taco Bell as vice president of public affairs, a position he held until his appointment at McDonald's as vice president of communications. He became senior vice President in 2002.
Daly is survived by his wife, Gail; three sons, Brendan, Patrick, and Evan; his mother, Virginia; sisters Patricia Daly; sister Denise (Daly) Grieve; brother, Tim Daly; and numerous cousins, nieces, and nephews.
In lieu of flowers, the family is requesting that donations be made to the construction of the new Ronald McDonald House in Chicago near Lurie Children's, an effort of the Ronald McDonald House Charities of Chicagoland-Northwest Indiana (RMHC-CNI).
CSP sends condolences to his family, friends and colleagues.
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