Ben travelled to East Timor (Timor-Leste) last year with his school, Ballarat Grammar, as part of its annual student immersion trip for interested Year 10 students.
The students were based in Ainaro, a town in the country’s south with a population of more than 15,000 people.
The people of Timor-Leste and Ainaro often go without, with more than 40 per cent of the population living below the poverty line.
During his travels, Ben was able to experience life in Timor-Leste through the gracious school children.
He helped out in the classroom at a local school and was able to lead a few lessons on the English language.
“It was a massive eye-opener; the people over there don’t have too much,” Ben said.
On his return home, Ben launched into action to continue helping the young people who were able to give him such a fresh perspective.
“The children in Ainaro really love soccer, but not many of them have shoes at all,” Ben said.
So started his footy and soccer boot drive.
And with some support from the Deni community, the footwear collected will soon arrive in Ainaro.
Collections points for the fundraiser included the Deni Rams clubrooms, Taskers and Deniliquin High School.
But Ben’s not stopping there.
He’s also recently held a bake sale at his school, with proceeds being donated to support refurbishments at the school he visited.
“I am just really grateful to the Deniliquin community for all their support, to my mum (Gen) for all of her help and everyone else who has been able to help in any way,” he said.
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