Without a miracle, Port Kembla Community Centre is set to miss out on more than $80,000 in donations.
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Wednesday is the last day of its crowdfunding campaign for Tender Funerals, a proposed alternative, low-cost funeral enterprise.
The campaign, on website Start Some Good, has notched up almost $82,000 in donations from 366 backers, but unless the campaign hits the $199,000 mark, all donations will be returned to pledgers and the centre will receive nothing.
"People have been very generous, but we had a big target to reach, so it is that combination of feeling grateful but disappointed too," said Port Kembla Community Centre manager Jenny Briscoe-Hough.
Ms Briscoe-Hough said the goal was set high because the project needed a minimum of $199,000 to be set up properly.
Ms Briscoe-Hough said she was still holding out for a rush of last-minute donations, but said even failure to reach the target would not stall the centre's commitment to the cause.
"Some people have said they want to give us the money and not get it back, so we'll still take donations and set them aside for Tender," she said.
"We'll still keep trying to find a way to fund it. We won't stop, we've been working on this for four years, and there are people who are very passionate about it."
The crowdfunding campaign expires at 11am on Wednesday morning. See startsomegood.com/tenderfunerals for more information or to donate to the cause.