DG Matthew Tilling-Shakoff with his wife Nicole, and children Hugo, Emilie and Sophie

Matthew Tilling-Shakoff was born in Orange, New South Wales (NSW) and is the eldest of two children. In his early childhood, he lived in the small country town of Molong in NSW. During his primary school years, his family moved to various cities throughout the state and settled in the Riverlands in South Australia before moving to Queensland in 1999.  Here, he completed high school and started a family-owned landscaping and earthmoving business, in which he worked for 14 years.

In 2007, he met his wife Nicole through mutual friends, and they were married nine years later on 2 May 2016. They’ve now been married for nine years and have three wonderful children—Hugo (7), Emilie (5), and Sophie (2). Matthew and Nicole moved to Tasmania from Queensland nine years ago – just 3 weeks after they were married, drawn by the cooler weather and relaxed lifestyle. Since settling into Port Sorell, they have owned and operated a local café for 3 years and then expanded to a pizzeria and café for the last five and a half years.

Matthew joined the Port Sorell Lions Club in 2017, shortly before the birth of Hugo, and quickly became actively involved in the club and its activities. Since then, he has proudly served as Club President on three occasions, and later as Zone Chair before stepping into the role of 2nd Vice District Governor.

Matthew views being a Lion as one of the most rewarding parts of his life and sees his role as District Governor as a privilege.  Matthew’s theme for his year is ‘Always Beside You’—because that’s exactly where he wants to be. Not leading from above, not watching from afar, just right there with your club, ready to help however he can.