The 22-year-old will race in the Big Splash with the Albury and Border Rescue Squad, but he'll also represent headspace, a beneficiary of the mental health fundraiser.

Josh will tell you there's nothing special about what he does for those two groups, along with Red Cross, Carevan, Country Hope and Friends of Nolan House (there could be one more).

But his track record volunteering would say otherwise.

Equally hard to miss is Josh as a person, with his height, wry smile that escapes at the corners, and boundless energy.

The latter earned him the nickname "pup" soon after being introduced to the Border VRA squad's Captain Paul Marshall in 2018.

"He came along to a Good Friday Appeal and he was like a puppy, going 'What can I do, what can I do?'," Paul says.

"He was like the nine-year-olds who were with us from my wife's dance studio.

"But nicknames aside, his enthusiasm was up there."

Josh is uncomfortable with his VRA tag being made public, and the attention he has received as Albury's Young Citizen of the Year for 2020.

In fact he argued strongly to include the award's nominees in this article; motivated young people like School Climate Strike organiser Eli Davern, who helped organise a new youth festival with Josh.

But this story is about Josh and the light and shade that has brought him to where he is today.

"I graduated from Xavier High School in 2015, and I went into being a teacher's aide with the Aspect school," he said.

"During my HSC I really didn't want to study.

"I would do anything to avoid it - and I wanted to impress girls as well - so I would go volunteer in the Aspect School satellite unit at Xavier.

"But I found out I really, really loved the work and the kids were amazing.

"So it turned from me trying to bludge, to me trying to make a difference in the kids' lives.

"There's no deep, meaningful story behind that one."

Josh works with Aspect three days a week and it's a miracle his schedule outside of work fits into the other four.

"Mondays are usually filled up with duties at Carevan, whether it's cleaning up the depot, or going to Foodshare - I've been with them for six months and they're a really great grassroots organisation," he says.

"I do Red Cross activities on Tuesday, driving clients to doctors appointments and generally helping people who have come from another country to set up their lives.

"And we have training for the squad on Tuesday nights.

"I've been with them now for two years and I've loved every minute of it."

Josh and half-a-dozen youth his age are among 17 of the squad's operational members - you have to be 18 to join.

After a few hurdles, Josh is close to achieving accreditation that allows him to play a bigger role during call-outs.

Paul can't let on just yet if young "Pup" will pass the test, but says he has already proven his worth.

"One of the moments where I realised Josh was getting it, was we had a few fresh guys show up and we were doing a run-around and Josh was talking them through equipment," Paul says.

"Realistically some of the tools anyone can use, but it's the knowledge behind why you use the tools that's important."

With this gear, the squad performs unimaginable tasks like cutting people out of mangled vehicles.

"One of the first jobs Josh went to was fairly serious," Paul recalls.

"We had an unfortunate incident where an older gentleman jumped off a balcony.

"It was a big eye-opener for Josh and a few others.

"One of the things we've always instilled is respect; that's someone's loved one.

"Josh followed that through."

The young squad member was getting calls and texts from his team all day.

"It's really reassuring to have that support network if I ever do struggle," Josh says.

"I'm not the only one rolling out to these crashes, if anything I'm one of the least active members, these guys like Paul will drop everything 365 days a year to help somebody.

"They're such great role models."

But before the likes of Paul Marshall, there were others in Josh's life who nurtured his altruistic outlook.

Josh puts down his community-mindedness to "being raised by a single mum and two amazing grandparents".

"My mum was a social worker and a nurse, so she's always been in that field of caring for others," he says.

"My mum worked so hard, she's the most amazing woman I know, she's put so much time in for my brother and me.

"One of the reasons I used to think my dad left was because I was a naughty child.

"I'd always try to be on my best behaviour, because I was scared of people going out of my life."

As he grew older, Josh found he was the one pulling away from others.

"I wasn't the best kid, especially in my late teens I was heavy on the booze," he says.

"But it took my amazing grandparents, my mum, my brother, and a really good support network to pull me out of that rut and show me what you can get out of giving to the community," he says.

Josh is now in a position where he can help other young people get out of a rut, helping to inform the work of headspace.

"I'm not a psychologist; I do more of the mental health literacy presentations," he says.

"But when people find out you volunteer for headspace, they do come up and tell you what's going on."

IN OTHER NEWS:

Headspace and the VRA squad are Josh's longest-running volunteer activities, and Paul knows he'll be sticking around.

"There's a bit of a mantra here that you get out what you put in," Paul says.

"If you just want to turn up for the hero shot, that's all you'll get out of it."

Josh concurs.

"People think I'm giving so much, but I get a lot out of it," he says.

"I meet so many amazing people who are so inspirational, and they're teaching me things everyday.

"I really want to inspire others, young and old, to volunteer - there's a lot they could be doing.

"And Thursdays and Fridays are pretty free for me, so if you know anyone that needs any help, let me know."