A few months ago, the rustic building on Wyrallah Road that we all knew as a second-hand furniture shop was transformed into a distribution centre for our flood-affected community. This transformation was partly due to the grand efforts of Amar Singh, Sydney resident and founder of the charity called Turbans 4 Australia, T4A.

Yesterday Amar told the Lismore App that crippling overheads have forced them to close but they will still be supporting the people of Lismore and surrounds.

“The rent was almost $3,500 a month, we’ve been paying that since March,” Amar said.

Rising fuel costs have also heavily impacted the charity’s ability to continue their repeated trips between Sydney and Lismore with truckloads of donations.

“The fuel bill was almost $20,000, transporting donations from Sydney to Lismore…one trip was about $1800 to $2000,” Amar added.

Without government funding, the charity continues to fundraise and find ways to adapt to the demands of the many causes they support.

In the weeks since the flood disaster, Turbans for Australia has delivered over 200 pallets of donated items to the East Lismore distribution centre.

“Brand new clothing, personal items, non-perishable food, tools, sanitisers, cleaning products…you name it,” Amar explained.

The charity’s new initiative makes a mobile distribution centre possible with the use of one of their new trucks. The Green and Gold Logistics project means that our local area can still be serviced with donations.

Members of T4A with Governor General David Hurley and his wife Linda at the recent launch of Green and Gold Charity Logistics in Sydney

“We are still going to run a pop-up market type thing. We will use the truck to do food drops, we can open the truck in a car park and people can collect what they need,” Amar explained.

Mr Singh also said they had received book donations for the Lismore Library from Sydney-based Lions Clubs and the Green and Gold truck will be delivering them to the area.

Amar Singh praised the people of Lismore and the generosity he and his team witnessed from volunteers.

“One lady offered us her house to stay in while we were here…it’s made a meaningful impact on people’s lives. It’s the town helping the town,” he said.

Keep connected to the Lismore App to find out where the Green and Gold Charity Logistics truck will be in the coming weeks.