A Facebook page dedicated to helping those in need sounds almost too good to be true, but with more than 1000 members, the Pay It Forward - Tauranga Facebook page is alive and pumping.

Manager of the page Mila Barach says she created the page about two years ago, and started the ball rolling by adding her friends.

Pay it Forward - Tauranga Facebook page organiser Mila Barach.

Eventually the page began getting more and more followers, and now sits at a little more than 1000 members.

'I guess I was hoping it would get big; I think there is definitely room to grow more and really see people give a little more than they have been,” says Mila.

'Knowing that people are going through tough times, and that people do essentially want to help each other” was part of the inspiration to start and manage the page, says Mila.

The page, which allows people to give things free of charge to those in need, is not a page to ask for free handouts, says Mila.

'I wanted one page just dedicated to people just giving without asking, people just need to realise that giving is more important than asking for free handouts all the time.”

All posts are moderated, but Mila says this isn't as time-consuming as approving requests.

'I moderate everything, which has been good in a way that I've made sure people aren't just saying ‘I need this' or trying to promote businesses, so it really is just a place where people are giving as opposed to everything else.”

There hasn't been any junk, says Mila, so people aren't trying to palm their rubbish on to others.

'I've made it as one of the rules that you can definitely ask if you know somebody else in need and you want to help them out, but we didn't really want people asking for personal things for themselves.”

Once every few weeks, Mila endures the gruelling process of adding people to the group.

She says this is one of the most time-consuming tasks of running the page.

'That's probably the biggest thing, checking people who are joining, because I have to go onto every profile and make sure they're not a fake profile and that they are people that actually live in the Bay.”

And it's a thankless job. Of the dozens of posts, Mila says nobody has thanked her for organising or managing the page so they can benefit, but that doesn't bother her.

'It's more about the community, and it wasn't done to get any praise from.

'Hopefully, this page is a really safe place and a nice place for people to be able to give to others and do something good.”

To find the page, go to www.facebook.com and search ‘Pay It Forward – Tauranga'.