Celebrating 10 years of friendship with the Lautem Community

On the 4th of November 2019, Administrator of Lautem Municipality (Mayor) Sr. Zeferino D S Sequeira together with local government officials and friends, held a special honorary celebration in appreciation and acknowledgement of Dr Kim Dunphy, Director of Many Hands International. The event held at the local government offices celebrated a decade of friendship between the Lautem community and Many Hands International, with acknowledgement of Dr. Kim's contribution and dedication to cultural and community development across the Municipality and throughout Timor Leste.

Dr. Kim Dunphy attended the event from Melbourne, Australia via teleconference, with Many Hands Internationals Team Leader, Nelinha Pereira accepting a certificate of thanks on her behalf.

In his speech, District Administrator, Mr. Zeferino expressed:

“We are grateful to have worked with you. You have made a big contribution to the community of Lospalos, to the local government and broadly throughout Timor Leste. I, as the Administrator of the Municipality, representing my people appreciate and want to thank you for your contribution and dedication to cultural development in Lospalos, and nationally through a range of projects. “

Team Leader of Many Hands International, Nelinha Pereira on behalf of her team, also expressed:

“We deeply value our collaboration with Dr. Kim Dunphy at Many Hands International and give thanks for the friendship over these past 10 years. Our culture is strong in Lautem and we are proud of this. We sincerely value having allies like Kim who respect and value our culture, and who support us as a community to protect, to know and to celebrate our culture.”

The Municipality expressed its thanks with a certificate of appreciation and a commitment to continuing to strengthen the 10 year friendship between the Lautem community and Many Hands International. 

“We hope to work with you not just in the past but for the longest that we can, so let’s continue to look for ways to continue to work with you in support of our people and the Lautem Municipality.”