Tonight, Beatriz, Chris, and Tabitha took on the quarterly task of packing up the sale at TRAID in Kilburn. When we arrived, the shop was packed with clothes and the challenge ahead looked pretty daunting. Our mission was to strip every item from the clothing rails, carefully pack everything into boxes, and then gather up and box all the hangers too.

Working together, we made great progress and left a mountain of neatly packed boxes ready for the next stage of the shop's move. As an added bonus, we discovered a rather fabulous silver sparkly dress which,l we personalised to be our unofficial GoodGym-themed outfit for the evening. Be sure to check out the photos for evidence! Great job, we will be back in September !

Earlier in the week, Ealing GoodGymers had been struck by the news of Acton junior parkrun's cancellation on Sunday due to the Eid in the Park celebrations. Sevan and Kash quickly scrambled to find an alternative morning activity, as a lie-in sounded far too boring. That search led them 6 km from Ealing to Wembley, where the two ran on Sunday to visit Mr F and his wife as early as 9 am.

The older couple needed support with garden maintenance, particularly removing weeds from the edges of a paved path and along the fence line. Mr F, who is due to celebrate his 90th birthday this month, was still able to mow the lawn on a warm day when he's feeling well, but weeding had become too strenuous for him.

With a selection of tools from Mr F's shed - some of them more unusual than those typically seen at GoodGym missions - Sevan and Kash got to work. Sevan, who tackled the brambles and thick-stemmed weeds along the wire fence, transitioned from precise secateurs to a fearsome slasher and finally a heavy-duty adze.

Kash, whose task was to remove all the weeds from the edges of the path, had a chance to try a new tool: a weed puller, and kept twisting it clockwise throughout the whole mission. The results were stunning: a neat stretch of bare soil on each side of the paved walkway. Mr F was delighted to see the path again, free from the encroaching overgrowth.

The GoodGymers had just enough time to dispose of the garden waste in the green bin, filling it to the brim. They then ran back to Ealing for their next task of the day, conquering Hanger Hill for the second time that morning.

Dennis, Beatriz and Pete met at Abbey community centre where Jason gave them flyers to hand out for the centre'sfree child care and instructed them on where to leaflet. We proceeded to Besant house and the estate there where we posted through letterboxes and under a few doors. We then proceeded to the Boundary estate and did the same, distributing all our leaflets. Great job!

Kamil and Pete met at B and B then jogged to Clitterhouse. Beatriz arrived shortly after. Anike showed us where to water. Beatriz and Kam watered the hanging baskets with cans while Pete watered the herb garden with a hose. We then walked and jogged on the return. Great job everyone.

Dennis, Samina, Pete and Kam met at Beer n Burger. We warmed up and jogged to Ashmore road where we collected copies of QPCC 's The Voice magazine. Samina, Beatriz and Kam went to Fernhead road while Pete and Dennis went to Ilbert Street. After successfully posting most of the magazines accompanied by a great sunset 🌇 we all reconvened then posted the few remaining magazines at the top of Fernhead. D + B walked back while S,K + P jogged back to Beer n Burger. Good job everyone 👏 An important issue of The Voice just before the council elections.

What a glorious Wednesday! We finally got to enjoy the first sunny day of the year, and there was absolutely no better way to soak up those rays than getting outside, getting a little dirty, and doing some good for the community.

Six of us met up with our brilliant host, Usma, at Oakington Primary School for a very thorny rescue mission. The target? A lovely wooden shed that had been swallowed up by a giant jungle of brambles!

Armed with rakes and some heavy-duty loppers and shears, the team got stuck right in. For about an hour, we hacked, snipped, raked, and wrestled our way through the thickets, moving the whole thorny mess into a huge pile safely out of the way.

The before and after photos say it all: we practically made a forest disappear and uncovered a whole side of the shed that had been lost to nature!

Usma was absolutely thrilled with our hard work, and it’s all for a fantastic cause. Thanks to this epic clearing session, the ground is now ready for phase two. In a future session, we'll be returning to lay down wood chip, transforming this newly reclaimed patch of land into a beautiful, peaceful seating area for the school children to enjoy.

A massive, huge GoodGym welcome to our three amazing newcomers: Nabil, Ada and Carolina, You all absolutely smashed your first task!