Two of her four children have degenerative diseases that include severe autism and epilepsy and the older of the two has no speech at all.

''Disabilities - it's what I am,'' Ms Thompson said. ''Cumulatively, I've had 47 years of dealing with intense disability. A lot of it was just about getting through one day at a time. It was tough.''

Ms Thompson also has 15 years' experience as a professional fundraiser in the not-for-profit sector, an attribute that will sit well at Pegasus, which last year was facing imminent closure before the community rallied with a massive fundraising effort, co-ordinated by former executive director Margaret Morton.

Ms Morton was in charge of the organisation for about a year, inheriting problems from its former administration. These included concerns raised in an independent report commissioned by Disability ACT that found Pegasus had a weak governance framework and needed a new management strategy to ensure its financial viability.

Ms Thompson said the efforts of Ms Morton helped to save Pegasus from closure and the organisation was now running on a much more even keel.

''We can take a bit of a breath,'' she said. ''I'll be looking to put programs in place that make Pegasus sustainable and by that I mean programs for people with a disability and funding programs.''

Pegasus, a not-for-profit community organisation that provides equestrian activities for people with disabilities, has 89 clients, 274 volunteers and 17 horses. Ms Thompson hopes to start a post-school program for teenagers with disabilities, an early intervention program for three- to six-year-olds, a sibling support program and a monthly evening support group for parents.

Ms Thompson, who has worked for disability organisations, alcohol and other drug organisations and education institutions, was born and bred in Canberra but has spent the past 34 years in Brisbane. In her most recent position, at the Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education in Canberra, she commuted from Brisbane.

For Pegasus, she is committed to moving back to the national capital, where she has strong links.

Her father, John Fleming, worked in the Department of Transport, and her mother, Marie, was a cook at the Orroral Valley Tracking Station.

The 185-centimetre executive attended North Ainslie Primary School, Lyneham High and Dickson College but never got the hang of basketball. A horse lover, she is also a member of the Canberra Riding Club.

Her sons with disabilities, Casey, 25, and Jason, 22, will remain in Brisbane where they are in out-of-home placement. Her oldest child, Luke, 27, works in rural Queensland while daughter Sophie, 13, will be moving to Canberra.

Early in her career, Ms Thompson initially worked in party plan ventures to juggle raising her children and then used her marketing and sales expertise to move into the not-for-profit sector.

As for the National Disability Insurance Scheme, Ms Thompson said she hoped the federal government stayed true to its promise to deliver it in full.

''There's a lot of work that needs to be done in facilitating and supporting the transition of it, both for families and service providers like ourselves. And I think that's key,'' she said.