"Maverick visited [Uniting Mirinjani] about two years ago and we got along pretty well," he said.

"He was a very nice little horse."

Pearce took a 45 minute virtual tour of Maverick's farm, and continued to Facetime Maverick regularly.

This was the brainchild of Uniting Mirinjani Lifestyle Coordinator Jo Sumner.

"Here at Uniting during the COVID-19 crisis it's been important to make sure the residents well-being is taken care of not to let them feel isolated," she said.

"I'm constantly thinking- trying to think of things to keep [residents] connected to the community, that's part of my job."

Pearce has no family, however he has a good relationship with the family who owns Maverick and other small horses on a farm near Bungendore.

"Everyone else was doing zoom with their families or Facetime with their families," she said.

"One night when I was in bed and I thought, 'Oh, let's see if we can Facetime Maverick for Henry', because he talks about them all the time."

"He was up for it and we've done it every week since then."

Pearce's next goal is to ride a horse on the farm when its safe to.

"I used to ride horses. I've ridden in Kiandra, a week's ride through the Snowy, that was about 30 years ago," he said.

Living through times of upheaval is not new to Henry Pearce, who was born in 1940 as World War Two began. A formative memory of his is being escorted back home by a soldier after running away on his first day of school- a memory that illustrates the surreal nature of childhood during wartime.

Despite not living through the 1918 Flu pandemic, it had a direct impact on his childhood and upbringing.

"In 1919, my father was in second year medicine, the flu had broken out in Sydney due to returned servicemen," he said.

"It ravaged Sydney and Melbourne."

His father spent time in quarantine in the Sydney Showgrounds.

"My father obviously was worried when me and my brother played in the backyard and dug holes," Pearce said.

"He'd always say when my mother called us for lunch 'wash your hands' - every time I came in from the backyard 'wash your hands, wash your hands' - [this advice] sort of merged into you."

Pearce moved to Canberra over 50 years ago. He worked in treasury for 20 years. He later studied at The Australian National University and then taught at Canberra Institute of Technology.

He moved to Uniting Mirinjani five years ago.

"I had some problems walking. Apart from that I'm quite well," he said.

"It's most important for older people to be able to rely upon the staff to look after us -and make sure we aren't getting up to mischief."

Henry Pearce looks forward to visiting the farm to see Maverick in person again.

"He is such a lovely horse."