After a career running a Unanderra company that built factories and shearing sheds across the nation, Dennis Woodward found a new and unexpected passion in semi-retirement.
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It started when his mother-in-law, Bonnie Affleck, and her sister, Gwen Parsons, became the first residents of the new HammondCare Horsley care home.
"I had been coming down for a while and thought 'what can I do to help?'," Mr Woodward said.
He was invited to do the bus-driving course and his life changed when he started taking young men with dementia out on weekly excursions.
Initially, he was shocked to discover many were the same age as his daughter but soon realised the onset of dementia can happen at any age.
HammondCare Dapto's younger onset dementia cottage allows clients to mix with other people their age.
But when Mr Woodward started taking the young men out every Thursday to locations such as the Historical Aircraft Restoration Society and the motoring museum he realised men of all ages had the same interests.
He found his own passion for cars and motorbikes was shared by the male residents, leading him to take them for a ride in his car and to bring his BMW 1200 motorcycle into the village for them to touch, sit on and relive memories.
"It started when one of them saw me park the bike," he said.
"He saw me drive in and when we went out on the bus he expressed an interest so I said I would bring it in and show him."
Mr Woodward said he had always lived in Wollongong although his Unanderra business, Brooks Building Pty Ltd, had taken him throughout Australia.
Now he gets great fulfilment from giving enjoyment to people of all ages with dementia.
"It is amazing what relationships you build," he said.
"You actually form a real bond. And they don't lose their sense of humour. It has given me a greater awareness of what other people and families go through. For me, it has given real satisfaction that I can help out in some little way."
Mr Woodward said he had received wonderful feedback from the wives and families of the men he was helping.
"I have met a few people here who have just been in tears when they see their husbands starting to talk about motorbikes," he said.
Volunteer leader Barb Criddle said Mr Woodward was providing a wonderful service that gave the male residents a real lift.
"It is great to have something for the guys to be interested in," she said.
"We are always looking for more places to take the men and we are always looking for more male volunteers."
HammondCare is a not-for-profit organisation with six cottages at its Dapto village.
Each cottage houses up to 15 residents.
