Ten years ago a local dentist travelled across the ocean to help those in need — and he has done so every year since.
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But his time with teeth is almost over and he’s ready to pass the reins.
Fortunately, two colleagues at the Goulburn Valley Dental Group clinic, a dental assistant and a dental practitioner, were feeling ready to do more with their roles.
This is how Geoff Woodhouse, Olivia Farrall and Margaret Tran decided to go to Timor Leste together. And they need your help.
Winding back to 2014 — how did Dr Woodhouse begin his annual volunteer trips?
“I went on an immersion with St Augustine’s Kyabram and was asked if I would come and do some dental work over in Timor,” Dr Woodhouse said.
“I took my extraction instruments and a few other odds and ends that I knew I could use over there with a minimal fuss.
“I spent must have been two weeks taking teeth out all over Timor, mainly up in the high country.
“At one stage where we were staying in Aeliu, about 50km away from Dili, and the first time we travelled there, it took three hours to go those 50km.”
This is where fate stepped in, with Dr Woodhouse’s wife, Vicki, being intrigued by a house in the area.
“My wife was drawn towards a house that was very close to where we were staying and one day she wandered down there and there was a Brazilian couple that said they were called by God to go to Timor Leste,” Dr Woodhouse said.
“They’d set up a training centre for youth because they felt they were to improve the lives of the youth of the area.
“They gave my wife a tour and there was one door they didn’t open and Vicki said to the woman, what’s behind this door?
“The woman said ‘We have a dental surgery’ and Vicki almost dropped to the floor.”
That was the beginning of his trips, going every year apart from 2020 and 2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
He kept returning because he felt it was his duty to give back, as people had given to him.
“I go back to my younger days — I was from a big family and we didn’t have a lot but I managed to get into dentistry,” he said.
“I had all of my primary and secondary education for free.
“Gough Whitlam paid for my university degree, so I graduated in 1980 from the University of Melbourne with a dental degree and no money but the ability to earn for 44 years.
“I’ve got to pay someone back for that, in my opinion, and I have that feeling that for what I have received, I owe a lot.”
Dr Woodhouse is retiring in December but said he didn’t want the trips to end, as the community deserved dental treatment.
“I feel I have a duty to pass on my knowledge and my care for others by taking someone who may continue this programme,” he said.
“Margaret showed a lot of interest when I’ve talked about it, and as soon as I started talking about it, Liv said, ‘I’m coming, I’m coming’.”
This is where Dr Tran and Ms Farrall come into the story.
Dr Tran has always been volunteer-minded and said she was ready to continue Dr Woodhouse’s legacy.
“I’ve always been really interested in volunteer work, whether it be overseas or here,” she said.
“I’ve done a trip to Vietnam and a trip to India but I’ve never done volunteer dental work.
“So when I heard that Geoff was doing it, and he’d been going to Timor Leste for the last 10 years, I asked him about it and he said, ‘Come join me’.
“I can’t miss out on that opportunity.”
Ms Farrall has been Dr Woodhouse’s dental assistant for several years and said she was excited to try something new.
“I’ve been helping him out for a really long time and I’ve just heard so many stories about Timor and I just thought that it was such a great opportunity to do something greater in my role,” she said.
“It’s just a good thing that we get to go over there and help people who wouldn’t even have a second thought about it because they just don’t have access to it.”
The trip is entirely funded by the team and with help from donations they will be able to cover the cost of materials and equipment.
“When we raise money, people say, ‘What’s that paying for?’,” Dr Woodhouse said.
“It’s paying for materials, it’s paying for the equipment that we take, you have to pay for yourself for the flight, you have to pay for your accommodation, food.
“Whatever money gets donated to us goes straight 100 per cent to what we’re doing.”
The team members will be in Timor Leste from August 16 until August 31 and need the public’s help to get them there.
They have set up a GoFund Me to help pay for equipment and other materials.
“We didn’t think it would go as well as it has, and we’ve actually reached our original target already,” Dr Tran said.
However any additional donations are still accepted, as the more they can take to Timor Leste, the more care they can give.
As of 1pm on July 29, the GoFund Me had reached over $3400.
If you would like to donate, head to gofundme.com/f/dental-mission-east-timor or to give cash donations head to GV Dental Group on Nixon St, Shepparton.
Cadet Journalist