Helping Timor Leste Bounce Back with Jonathan Chapman

Welcome back to the What’s Possible podcast. 

I've got a fantastic interview with someone that I met as a Guidance client earlier in the year. His name is Jonathan Chapman and he is a senior teacher at Kardinia International College in Geelong. When we were working together he mentioned that he travelled to Timor and did some volunteer work there. We spoke a little bit about it, but of course, the primary purpose was to get together and talk financial planning. So we couldn't dive into things in much detail. But I always kind of had it filed away in the back of my mind that I hope I get a chance to have a chat with Jonathan one day and find out a whole bunch more about it. And so this podcast was the perfect opportunity to scratch that itch, I suppose.

In this discussion, Jonathan explains the history of East Timor, and I must admit, I was certainly ignorant of the vast majority of it. It was an eye -opener for me, and I suspect many people listening will be in the same boat. He provided a really interesting snapshot as to what life is like today in East Timor as well as the impact that volunteering has had on him. He's been volunteering over there for 10 years through a program with his school. He's also made personal trips to help out beyond the school program. He's retiring next year, but he intends to continue to contribute to the community that he's built a relationship with.

In our interview Jonathan also shares what his students have been able to take from the school's efforts. 

A great discussion here and certainly it motivated me to look for opportunities where I can make a contribution as well. Perhaps some of you listening might feel the same way too.

Useful link: https://www.austimorfn.org/

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Guidance Financial Services: www.guidancefs.com.au