Some of Ann Procter's earliest experience working with disabled people came from helping out her father, who had acquired a disability as a result of childhood polio.
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''One of the things he couldn't do was he couldn't wade through muddy flats to catch the little mullet to be the bait when he fished for flathead … so I always volunteered for that role,'' she said.
''I loved the time I spent with Dad, sitting there … [it was] a lovely, gentle time with him.''
Mrs Procter has been nominated for a Lifetime Achievement Award in the National Disability Awards, held every year on the International Day of People with Disability.
She said although it's a great honour, she's just one of many people working together to make a difference.
''You do what you do and you do it for a whole range of reasons,'' she said. ''Sometimes you do it because it has to be done by someone, and you're the one who is there.''
For more than 40 years, Mrs Procter has been an active supporter of people with disabilities.
In the ACT, she established and chaired the group Advocacy for Inclusion, as well as running the Department of Human Services at Canberra Institute of Technology for 18 years.
Her daughter Alison said she couldn't be more proud of her mother.
''Mum has demonstrated how to create a better world through the lens of inclusion for people with disabilities,'' she said.
Mrs Procter has also been a tireless advocate for her first daughter Suzy, who was born with multiple disabilities.
She said she wanted people with disabilities not to be always seen as on the receiving end of charity, but rather as contributing members of the community.
''By inclusion we get to know people more and we get to see what people can contribute and to value their contribution,'' she said.
Over the past 40 years, Mrs Procter said, she had seen vast improvements in the way that the disabled are treated and cared for.
''We've moved a long way on some things and we've still got a long way to go,'' she said.
''But we're getting there, which is quite exciting.''
