Celebrating our leaders: Rachael’s Story
Wednesday 27th July 2022The Boys’ Brigade has over 10,000 volunteer leaders across the country who support children and young people to learn, grow and discover. Over the course of 2022 we are sharing some of their stories each month as we celebrate our amazing leaders.
Meet Rachael
Rachael Knowles is the Leader-in-Charge of the Company age group at 53rd Manchester, as well as being Chair of the National Young Leaders Group and Programme & Comms Lead for Unite.
What is your current career?
I’m an Oracle Agile Delivery Lead, which is essentially an IT software Project Manager.
What skills have you gained from BB that have helped you in your career?
BB has taught me so much – including the typical things like leadership and communication skills which have been crucial for my career. It has also taught me perseverance; to keep going even when things get tough. The most important thing BB has taught me is that my voice and my opinions matter even if you are the youngest person in the room.
What has been your proudest moment so far in BB?
I would say it’s either having the opportunity to travel to Singapore to represent BB at a Global Fellowship Conference, or when I got to meet the Queen whilst representing BB.
As a leader, my proudest moment has to be the first year we took our young people to Unite and watching them all push themselves out of their comfort zone and have such a great time.
What would be your top tip for other young leaders within BB?
Always remember why you are part of the organisation. If your main priority is always the young people and their experiences in BB, that will take you far. Oh, and if you believe in something keep pushing for it, your voice matters just as much as those people who have been involved for years! 1 Timothy 4:12 is a good Bible verse to keep referring to.
What are you most looking forward to in BB?
I’m most looking forward to seeing what the Young Leaders Group achieve during this next year. We have our weekend away in October and I can’t wait to spend some time with young leaders from across the organisation seeing how we can enthuse, motivate and encourage each other.
If you are a leader and would like to share your story with us please email comms@boys-brigade.org.uk
