In October 2014, the 22-year-old duo set out in their hometown of Brisbane armed with two things: a community-minded spirit and an old van.

This was no ordinary old van, though.

The Brisbane boys had fitted the van out with two washing machines and two dryers, and established the world’s first free mobile laundry service for the homeless; Orange Sky Laundry.

“It started with a really crazy idea of improving the hygiene standards of the homeless but also finding a way to positively connect our homeless friends to the community,” Nic says.

Two years on, Nic and Lucas have been named the 2016 Young Australians of the Year, while Orange Sky Laundry has expanded on a national scale.

With 10 vans around Australia and 622 devoted volunteers, the organisation now washes and dries around 7.2 tonnes of laundry a week.

In hindsight, it’s easy to say that Orange Sky was destined for success.

But in reality, Nic and Lucas took a selfless risk in the hope that it would pay off.

While Lucas was fresh from a gap year overseas and recommencing his mechanical engineering and commerce studies at university, Nic was working with the Channel 7 news team in what he thought was his dream job...until Orange Sky came along.

The duo funded the first van out of their own pockets and as interest generated around the cause, they managed to seek donations from 24 countries during its first month of operation.

A combination of generous contributions and a widespread willingness to support something that had never been done before saw Orange Sky take off at an astonishing pace.

What was the community’s initial reaction to a couple of guys driving around in a van offering to wash and dry clothes?

Given that Nic and Lucas have cooperated with other well-established organisations such as food vans from the beginning, Orange Sky has always served to complement the services already available the homeless community, and was therefore welcomed with open arms.

And slight disbelief.

“What we found was when we first took the van out; people were really blown away with the ability to wash and dry their clothes, as they’d never before been able to do that for free in a Brisbane park,” Nic says.

“But what we also found - and what we already knew - was that to take someone’s only possessions into our possession and wash and dry them is a tremendous privilege, and a tremendous amount of trust seems to be gained in the process.”

While Nic and Lucas’ initial goal was to help improve the hygiene standards of the homeless, it soon evolved into something much greater.

This unexpected change of direction stemmed from one simple realisation: “laundry takes time”.

And what better way to pass the time than with a good old-fashioned chat?

While many may take for granted something as simple as a casual conversation, Nic and Lucas soon discovered that a few kind words can be a very powerful source of happiness for some.

“That’s where Orange Sky now makes the biggest impact, not by washing and drying clothes, but by fostering really positive and genuine conversations,” Nic says.

“That’s what our volunteers’ core mission is every day, so that our homeless friends can feel really great about being connected to the community.”

To put things into perspective, Orange Sky volunteers initiate around 1,200 hours of conversation each and every week.

Just when you thought these boys had done more than their bit, there’s more.

On August 23, Orange Sky began trialling its first ever shower van, funded by Melbourne’s Shine On Foundation.

Again, while a hot shower can easily be taken for granted by some, it can mean a great deal to others.

Not only does it improve health and hygiene standards, but it also restores a sense of respect and pride by feeling clean and respectable.

Plus, sometimes it’s just nice to enjoy a relaxing, refreshing shower.

“One of the first ladies who ever got into our shower van - a lady by the name of Trina - told me that out of the whole six years she’d been living on the streets, those four minutes in the shower were the only time she’d ever felt alone,” Nic says.

“I thought that being a homeless lady in Australia would be an incredibly lonely thing, but obviously you’d always be looking out for potential danger or risks, so it’s really cool that we can now complement our laundry with safe, hot showers.”

Given that the shower van is another world first, Nic and Lucas are currently working to perfect the service in Brisbane, before introducing it to Melbourne and the rest of the nation.

It’s pretty clear that these Brisbane mates are busier than your average twenty-somethings.

As Orange Sky has continued to grow, both Nic and Lucas have become full-time volunteers (that’s right, zero monetary incentive whatsoever), investing all of their combined time and effort into the organisation.

“Now it’s basically our full-time job, but we don’t see it as a job; we see it as a real privilege to have a platform to help people,” Nic says.

“Being a part of Orange Sky has been a real honour, and each and every day Luc and I are blown away with the people that we’re able to connect with.”

The astounding modesty of both Nic and Lucas is just one of the reasons that these two charitable chaps from Brisbane have gained the support of the global community in their mission.

To Nic, that mission is plain and simple: “Tonight there’s 105,000 Australians that are homeless, and we want to help them”.