He has a strong legacy that is firmly planted away from the sea; his father, Ron Bishop, works at Mount. Isa Mine, and his mother, Debbie Bishop, works at Mount Isa School of the Air.

They have lived in Mount Isa for the past 29 years, and Timothy Bishop has fond childhood memories of camping out in Mount Isa’s hills, going to the rodeo, and seeking out the best swimming holes.

As he stands on the deck of a seagoing vessel, Timothy laughs: “I had no idea I would ever do this.”

The ‘this’ he refers to is his career as a deckhand aboard an Australian medical ship that sails along the coastline of Papua New Guinea. The ship offers primary healthcare, dentistry, optometry, and health education services to the rural majority in partnership with national and provincial health authorities.

Bishop joined its crew in a roundabout way — after finishing Spinifex State College in 2009, he  moved to Townsville to attend training with Youth With a Mission becoming a full-time volunteer in 2013.

Two years later, YWAM asked him to join the crew of their new medical ship, the MV YWAM PNG. “I decided to give it a shot, loved it, and never left,” he said.

He has been a full-time and entirely self-funded volunteer with YWAM for five years now. His role as a deckhand is to enable the ship and its healthcare teams to reach the remote villages.

Timothy helps maintain the ship, plan patrol routes, and drive teams to isolated villages in small boats — once for a record 10 hours in one day and his superiors have nothing but praise.

“Tim is always the easiest man to ask for help; he gets enthusiastic about anything he is involved with, whether it’s tidying stores or preparing a risk assessment for challenging boat patrols,” says Jan Alnes, the captain of MV YWAM PNG. “Tim is the best kind of colleague, a devoted friend, and a positive spirit for the community around him.”

Through Timothy’s three years aboard the ship, he has grown in character and faith, and he is grateful to be able to give back.

He recently stepped down from bosun, the ship deckhand manager, to train a Papua New Guinean deck cadet into the role.

“I love having the impact in young people’s lives, like the deckhands...just being able to be a catalyst for change and help them launch into whatever is next,” he said

Timothy sees his role as a part of a bigger picture. He is not just driving boats, he is part of a team working toward a healthy Papua New Guinea.

“Serving the remote parts of Papua New Guinea with the teams I get to go with,” he said. “I wouldn’t trade it for the world.”