Prior to becoming a pastor Mr Van Der Putten worked in more secular roles but felt the pull to be a minister.
“The desire to help people outweighed everything else and that’s what dragged me into the ministry,” Mr Van Der Putten said.
Though his contract is only five years long, Mr Van Der Putten is hoping to stay much longer. So far he has enjoyed Shepparton and described it as a thriving little town and a lot noisier than where he came from.
As for his new congregation, Mr Van Der Putten only has positive things to say.
“Yeah, they're great. They're very friendly, very open. Very, very talented people”, Mr Van Der Putten said.
Ministry work can be quite taxing and though there is great joy in the work, like all jobs of a similar nature, being a minister also means being exposed to a lot of sorrow.
However, it’s the connections that he makes during his work that keeps Mr Van Der Putten inspired.
“Working with people, helping people change, helping people transition through life's journeys from being young through to adulthood and marriage, having kids through to people going to be with the Lord when they pass away,” Mr Van Der Putten said.
Though Mr Van Der Putten can be seen predominantly at the 10am Sunday Mass, he is available to have a chat anytime.
And you don’t have to be a Christian to reach out to him.
“I think that the biggest thing is don't be afraid of talking to us … my heart is that people can see Jesus. So I'm open to everybody to talk to everybody. I want to support people. It's as simple as that,” Mr Van Der Putten said.
When he isn’t running mass, doing outreach community work or is otherwise preoccupied with church matters, Mr Van Der Putten can be found sampling Shepparton’s various cafés, looking for which coffee is the best.
