I see it as part of my role to create helpful debate; to not always take things at face value, and ask questions that make people think in a different way.
Gary Moss became one of YMCA Doncaster’s Board members in November 2021.
Gary is an ‘all-in’ kind of guy. Or, in his own words, “I’m not a plodder”. He moved to Yorkshire in 2018 and quickly made it his mission to get stuck in: meeting people, exploring the countryside and attending networking groups – he even climbed the Yorkshire Three Peaks (in eight hours)! Becoming a member of our Board was a big part of this.
“Joining YMCA Doncaster is a part of embracing where I live,” he explained. “But not only that, I want to give back. Being on the board of a charity has been on my wishlist of things to do for several years. I know it will grow me personally as well as give me the opportunity to give guidance to a great cause. Particularly after covid, I want to help the charity get back to some sort of normality and thrive again so that it can continue to help people in the community.”
Gary’s working life has more than prepared him for this role, and it all began with a stack of newspapers on his doorstep. Every Thursday evening when he was thirteen, Gary would deliver newspapers to his community. He described how it gave him a groundwork of reliability and how not to be a fair-weather guy. Literally. “Wind, rain, or snow – you didn’t get a choice. And the bag was pretty heavy for a thirteen-year old. It wasn’t very glamorous, but it taught me that sometimes you need to roll your sleeves up and do what’s needed.”
Gary quickly moved from delivering newspapers to writing them. And he was good at it. He qualified as a journalist in 2008 and found himself writing for newspapers on a freelance basis before taking a job for an agency writing for several staff publications. While he was the editor for Royal Mail’s staff magazine in 2015 it won an internal publication award and the IOIC (Institute of Internal Communications) selected him as their editor of the year. He is still a freelance writer to this day, and after a move into sales in 2016, he also performs a sales role for a data management company.
This hybrid of experience means he brings a variety of skills to our Board. The commercial drive of his sales role means he has jumped at the opportunity to be involved with a subgroup that looks after YMCA Doncaster’s investments. Whereas his writing role has taught him skills that aids the Board’s discussion: how to communicate effectively and ask the right questions to get the right information. “Sometimes it is helpful to challenge someone’s perspective to get the best result. I have an inquisitive mind I suppose which comes from my journalism experience. So I see it as part of my role to create helpful debate; not to always take things at face value, and ask questions that make people think in a different way.”
When not at work, Gary’s either using his season ticket to watch Tottenham play, running (he’s run the London marathon twice!), or playing snooker. “You might say boring,” Gary laughed when he mentioned his love for snooker. “But I say niche.” With the two biggest tournaments in York and Sheffield, he’s moved to the right place. Sports aside however, Gary is a very social person – spending lots of time with his friends as well as his wife and four-year-old daughter.
If you would like to join Gary on our Board of Governors, please click here for information.