The high cost of rent, power and telephones led to organiser Karlie Irwin and her team having to shut the door of the Glenroi Avenue operation on Monday.

It has provided free furniture, clothing, food and other services to 8000 needy families in the past two years.

Mrs Irwin said that if they could find another shopfront in Orange at minimal rent they could re-open and have asked for the community to help out.

She said they would endeavour to keep operating their free mowing service and a crisis accommodation centre in Peisley Street as long as funding could be maintained.

Pay It Forward is planning a garage sale and barbecue on November 18-19 to sell off remaining stock to raise funds to pay off their debts.

That includes $14,000 rent in advance demanded by the landlord as their lease was not due to expire until April.

“This is of great concern,” Mrs Irwin said.

“We need to pay six months in advance to get out of this lease.

“That’s $14,000, we are certainly going to be in dire straits around this building.”

She said she had approached the owner about their plight but he had insisted the money be paid.

Mrs Irwin said they had been unsuccessful in obtaining government grants and had to fund all their running costs.

She said she had poured a lot of her own money into the charity until her accountant called last week to say it was getting out of hand.

“He said, ‘you’ve got to get real Karlie, you’re volunteering full time’.”

Mrs Irwin said that while several break-ins had hit them financially, running costs including $2000 a month for electricity, a $1100 phone bill and having to pay $2250 a month rent had hit hardest.

“That’s what killed us,” she said.

Senior administrator Teresa Hargraves said needy people would suffer without Pay It Forward’s services.

“It is pretty sad, it’s sad for the community,” she said.

“We’ve helped a lot of people, there is no service like it.”

Member for Orange Phil Donato said Pay It Forward had not approached him for funding help.

“If there’s anything I could do to help, or the government could do, I will look into it,” he said.