When Paul Sloan walks into the room, seven-year-old Lilah McCudden's eyes light up.
She bounds to his side, gives him a big hug and starts talking his ear off about the horse she is going to ride in that morning's class.
It's moments like this that have kept Mr Sloan at Pegasus Riding for the Disabled more days than not for the past 14 years.
"You can't help but form a relationship with a child when you work with them. It's only an hour a week but after 20 weeks you get to know each other," he said.
"You witness miracles. You witness things that happen that shouldn't happen. It can be the slightest thing, they are actually able to hold themselves up.
"I've seen kids talk that shouldn't be talking; that have never talked."
Pegasus runs riding classes for children with disabilities, with a massive volunteer cohort keeping the life-changing organisation humming along.
Mr Sloan started as a gardener but after getting to know the incredible kids that came through the centre, stepped into a role as a 'side-walker' - which means helping the kids that are unable to hold themselves up on the horse, or need extra-support during a ride.
The outcomes for children with disabilities are proven and exceptional. Talking about the impacts a weekly horse ride has for these kids, Ms Sloan breaks down.
"I've seen parents in tears, witnessing something their child has down they've never seen. It happens regularly," he said.
"I suffer from depression so I recognise what it is and this sort of stuff helps me so much."
Mr Sloan has fought his own battles, and been through more than most. A car crash in his 20s claimed his left arm and left him in rehab for two years, where Mr Sloan first experienced depression.
"[The crash] was just before my 23rd birthday and the year before I got diabetes, nearly to the day," he said.
"So I'm an insulin-dependent diabetic and I've got one arm, and I have all sorts of troubles but you look at these guys - it's nothing."
The former club doorman was forced to leave his job at just 45 after issues with his arm, which led him to find his calling at Pegasus.
"Thinking at 45 I'd been thrown on the scrapheap, I got very depressed," he said.
"My mother witnessed it ... my mum has been a volunteer her whole life. She started saying to me find volunteer work, find something and do that."
He walked into the Holt farm by chance on an open day and something clicked. Since then, he has found the love of his life there, is now a proud stepfather and roped his brother in to help as well.
Mr Sloan's passion for Pegasus is infectious. He wants more Canberrans to get involved - particularly men.
"Of all the volunteers we'd have more than 260 females and half a dozen men," he said.
