Syngenta’s Margaret Bell to Retire

It’s been a long time, but after 35 years at the company, Syngenta marketing communications manager Margaret Bell will retire May 4.

“It’s time to move on to something else,” Bell said. “It’s hard to believe that somebody can be in a job that long. Once you start having deadlines in your life, your life starts to go by very quickly. Before you know it, it’s 35 years.”

Bell started her Syngenta career in the Chemicals Group, switching to Ag in 1980. “That’s when my career really started moving,” she said, noting the rise of generics at the time. She has worked in marketing communications in Syngenta’s Lawn & Garden Group since 2001.

Bell also has been active in many Green Industry associations throughout her tenure, especially the Turf and Ornamental Communicators Association (TOCA), of which she served as vice president for nearly 12 years.

Bell never will forget the sing-alongs at TOCA. “I will miss my involvement in TOCA a lot,” she said. “That is a fun time. Sometimes just watching people sing, it’s just so much fun. The passion we have for what we do is expressed in the way we sing the song.”

When Bell looks back, she will miss the people of the golf industry most of all. “The golf industry is very, very unique,” she said. “I’ve really enjoyed working in it. A lot of times I’ve been the only minority and only woman in the group and I didn’t even notice it. That’s pretty good to know you’re around people who are all good folks. I will miss that more than anything.”

Bell said she’ll work on projects during her retirement, but a 40-hour workweek is out of the question. She welcomes the opportunity to spend more time with family and enjoy some down time. “It’s just time to go,” she said. “I’m not even nervous. I’m excited about my future.”