When Hadley Glover decided to tell his family and friends about his sexuality, he was afraid of their reaction. Three years on, and as Kent county federation vice chair, he’s now committed to supporting others to be who they want to be.
Hadley feared disappointing his family when they found out he was gay, worried they would be concerned about him not passing the family farm down to the next generation.
At 16, he finally came out, and his fears proved unfounded.
School was a different story, where he found it difficult to be accepted by his peers, leaving him anxious about sharing the news with members at his Young Farmers’ Club.
“I joined Shorne YFC when I was 13 after my parents had encouraged me to sign up to bring me out of my shell,” said Hadley. “I was originally quite worried about how to tell people in Young Farmers and how it would be perceived. However, I found it didn’t make any difference. I felt accepted by all the members in my club about who I was and who I chose to be.
“Young Farmers gave me the platform to display my most authentic self, which was very important to me at a time when I didn’t feel I was able to in places like school.”
Hadley, one of the youngest county federation vice chairs, is eager to put Kent back on the YFC map by boosting its participation in competitions and activities.
Despite a lack of experience in flower arranging, he entered NFYFC’s Floral Art competition to ensure Kent had an entry this year at the Malvern Autumn Show. Kent members and clubs are also shortlisted for YFC Achiever Awards in November after a record number of nominations from the county.
Hadley says he found support throughout Kent when he came out and he hopes to now provide that to other members when they share their differences. And, according to Hadley, diversity is certainly celebrated within the county.
“Kent Young Farmers has a high number of school clubs and these draw members from outside of the rural community, which results in a higher diversity of members. I truly feel that Kent Federation of Young Farmers’ Clubs is for Everyone,” said Hadley. “This benefits everyone as it means we get more ideas and influences on what we as a county do.”
Through Kent FYFC, Hadley was also introduced to showing and he now shows at around eight livestock shows a year, across the south east and east Anglia.
As well as working on the family farm, Hadley is also an Animal Care and English tutor at a SEN college on a work-based farm in Kent. He believes his experience in YFC has equipped him with vital skills.
“Young Farmers has given me the confidence and the ability to communicate with a range of people including SEN young adults, the LGBTQ+ community and people from diverse backgrounds,” he said.
