Lismore has once again shown its true spirit when the call for a forklift went out last Friday so donated goods could be loaded off and onto trucks then delivered to distribution centres.

The Lismore App put out the call for help (Urgent plea goes out for a forklift) at 2:33pm last Friday and four hours later Kwik Strip business owner Trent Smith had received $1000 and the loan of a forklift for a month.

The cash was spent on getting the forklift on a truck from Alstonville to South Lismore, insurance, a new battery and fuel. A big shout-out to Pam from Ace Variety Discounts in Alstonville for the loan of the forklift!

The forklift will allow Trent, Gemma Tonga and Emanuel Roberts (Gemma and Trent are old Richmond River High school friends) to receive more donations, offload them and break them down into individual care packs that people can take so it is all equally distributed.

From the time the flood hit, the three friends were in helping mode because they all had friends who had lost their homes or their children's school friends had lost theirs.

While Trent was helping clean up businesses, Gemma and her husband and Emanuel started cooking 3 meals a day at Clifford Park.

"I couldn't sleep", Gemma said, "I was worried that kids didn't have any food to eat. Those families that were taking in those that needed refuge. Along with some Indian men from Ballina who relieved us, I think we've cooked about 3000 to 4000 meals now."

Emanuel relayed a story about Gemma's husband Sione who drove all day from Lismore to Kyogle to Casino trying to find enough meat to cook to add to the meals.

(Gemma, Emanuel and Trent in front of the brand new clothes that will be given to those in need)

The clothes came from a well know Indian group that has been supporting Lismore throughout our rescue & recovery phase now into clean up, Turbans 4 Australia.

Some of the non-perishable items they have received has been going to more remote communities like Coraki and Broadwater.

While there are some people that do try and grab as much as they can while in survival fight or flight mode, Gemma has seen the complete opposite as well. Two teenage boys gingerly took two pieces of clothing each at the Koori Mail and said they didn't want to take too much.

"I said, what are you doing? This is for you. Grab a bag and let's go and get you some stuff you need. I had to go into another room and have a cry because these kids were the same age as mine."

"We've had people come in with mud up to their armpits with no other clothes so they come in looking for fresh clean clothes, shoes, socks because they have nothing. It is a blessing that we could be there to support and help them."

While they were gifted clothes from other people, the thought was to try and get some new clothes so that people had ownership of it, "They feel like it's theirs," Gemma said.

In the face of a natural disaster, as we have suffered, there is no denying that people from all walks of life have come together for the good of our community. It has brought everyone together in the way we needed.