Dike, Fred, Bekah and I walked together to the task where we met new member Erin - welcome Erin! Today also marked Fred's 5th task - well done Fred! We did introductions and then got more information about the task. The task was to weed and tidy the paving area around the gravestone of Kitty (Catharine) Wilkinson (née Seaward) (1786-1860). Kitty Wilkinson was a pioneer in public hygiene - responsible for developing the first combined public wash house and public baths in the UK (right here in Liverpool) helping to stem the outbreak of cholera during the 19th century. In Liverpool in 1832, she opened up her house so that neighbours could use her boiler (the only one in the neighbourhood) to wash and disinfect their clothes and bedding - this would become the blueprint for the the first official wash house and public baths opened in Liverpool on Frederick Street in 1842. This saved many lives and educated many on public health. Her gravestone reads: “Indefatigable and selfdenying. She was the Widows Friend: the support of the Orphan, the Fearless and Unwearied Nurse of the Sick: the Originator of the Baths and Wash houses for the Poor. It is apt that there are many tributes around the city to Kitty recognising her significant contributions. Some include: - The Faculty of Health, Innovation, Technology and Science at Liverpool John Moores University will soon be housed in the "Kitty Wilkinson Building" - Liverpool Hope University has a halls of residence - There is a marble statue of her in St George's Hall (the first women to be honoured in this way). - Kitty's Laundrette is a not-for-profit community Laundrette in Everton

We split up into two groups. Dike, Fred and Bekah worked on tidying the edges of grass around the pathway leading to Kitty's gravestone while Erin and I weeded the groves in between. Erin made super light work of the main section of the task so we moved outwards to cover wider ground. Dike, Fred and Bekah made the edges very neat and tidy and also supported the sweep up of grass and weeds removed. Well done everyone! We cleared far more than we expected and all before the rain set in!

I believe Kitty would often talk about the importance of supporting her neigbours and community and it was while we were doing this task that we had a lovely visitor from Liverpool City Council say hello and thank Goodgym for all its efforts in the community. Community and connection are always the words that come to mind when I think about goodgym.

Twelve Goodgymmers gathered on a lovely summer’s evening at the cemetery below the impressive cathedral and help the Friends of St James Gardens continue their amazing work caring for this beautiful and historic area.

Michael gave us a warm welcome and soon had us divided into three task groups. The main focus of the session was weeding the paving around the monument, while the other two groups took on a couple of outlying tasks: litter picking and clearing the nettles and undergrowth around the tunnel entrance to the cemetery

But this wasn’t just any Goodgym evening. It was a night of reunions. Lucien and Sian were back in Liverpool and, naturally, made sure a Goodgym session was part of their plans. bringing along Sian's Mum Karen who we had met not long before Sian moved away. Although they no longer live in Liverpool at the moment, Sian and Lucien are certainly not absent from the Goodgym brainpower. Both continue to suggest ideas, come up with plans and keep things moving from afar. As Sian describes it in her WhatsApp title, “Task Force in Absentia” — proof that moving away doesn’t get you out of Goodgym responsibilities! It was so lovely to see them both back. They are such active members of GoodGym Liverpool, and it’s brilliant to see that their enthusiasm and commitment to Goodgym continues even though life has taken them to Spain and Staffordshire at the moment,.

And for Lucien, it was a particularly special evening because this was his 100th Goodgym task! 100 tasks is no mean feat at the best of times, but Lucien has managed it while undertaking his PhD, moving home and city, and undergoing significant surgery. Quite an impressive list of life events to fit around 100 Goodgym tasks!

It was also a joy to see Leo back after his time away with family. Great to have his positive energy back in the group — Leo we have missed you. Dina and Leo were talking about Fado a particular type of Portuguese music... I had to go away and look it up... Goodgym brings so many new things into our lives we never stop learning from each other.

The evening flew by in a blur of chats, laughter and hard work. Minutes became an hour almost without us noticing, and the transformation of the paved area around the monument was a joy to behold.

A truly precious moment was as Ellie uncovered a huge piece of turf covering a gravestone or ledger stone. She peeled it back — and underneath was the inscription from the gravestone, with the engraving preserved in relief in the bottom of the turf. Robert Merchant's inscription echoes from stone to earth uncovered by our Ellie.

The next day on our WhatsApp group it led to a discussion on the use of gravestones as paths and flooring ... I tell you Goodgym Liverpool has the best people to learn something new every day.

Back to our Monday task and with the work done, it was time to celebrate Lucien’s 100th task with some well-earned sweet treats. Nobody seemed particularly keen to rush off. People lingered, standing around chatting and catching up, enjoying the warmth of the evening and each other’s company. Goodbyes became long, lingering goodbyes, as conversations continued and nobody quite seemed ready to call it a night. It was just one of those evenings .... A beautiful summer evening, a brilliant piece of work completed, an unexpected glimpse of history uncovered, reunions, laughter — and Lucien celebrating his 100th task.

Congratulations again, Lucien. We’re looking forward to seeing you back in Liverpool — preferably wearing your wings T-shirt. And what better place to earn your wings than in St James’s Gardens? After all… Earning your wings is no grave thing!

On a finally cool summer evening, Goodgym assembled at St James Gardens to get to work giving the park a bit of a spruce up.

We divided into three teams: Bekah and Sallyann on the litter picking, Ellie, Dina and Clara on the weeding and Naser and Vikky on bench varnishing duty.

We were joined by Friends of St James Gardens who provided fun facts (like what a pineapple weed is) and witty jokes (a lorry carrying Strepsils overturned on the motorway; there was no congestion).

We soon got 'into the groove' of the task, quite literally in the case of the weeding, whereby we were digging up weeds between the paving slabs. Likewise the varnishing team successfully varnished two of the newly installed (and very nice looking) benches for years to come by very carefully applying Varnish into all the 'grooves'. Even the litter picking duo conquered the 'grooves' of the park, retrieving litter from some of the nooks and crannies.

All in all, after two benches varnished, two bin bags filled and a good chunk of patio was weeded, we called it a night and said our goodbyes before heading off in our various directions until next week!

Monday evening brought another brilliant GoodGym Liverpool session, this time on the Mount at the beautiful St James’ Gardens by the Anglican Cathedral. As always, the evening started with movement and good company, with part of the group meeting near famous Suitcases for a run before heading down to the task location together. After a warm-up and an easy run through the city, we arrived ready to get stuck in.

The gardens were waiting for a bit of love and it didn’t take long before everyone found a job to tackle. Armed with tools, gloves and plenty of energy, we spread out across the space to help tidy and refresh the area. Some of us focused on clearing overgrown sections, cutting back vegetation to help reopen parts of the pathways and make the gardens easier to enjoy. Others got busy cleaning, litter picking and generally sprucing things up to bring a bit of order back to the space.

Bit by bit, the area started to transform. Paths became clearer, corners looked brighter and the gardens felt more open and cared for. After plenty of teamwork, laughs and muddy hands, we wrapped up the session feeling accomplished before heading back, knowing we’d made a real difference to a much-loved local space.

The mid April weather being what it is, our latest group run began with a mix of a rain deluge and sunshine at the Suitcases, which rewarded us with some beautiful rainbows before we even started. A nervous Liam stepped up to lead the run for the first time, leading Aatefa, Sallyann, Heetu, Steph, and Laura on a short but sweet run through the Georgian streets toward the Cathedral. It was a great way to warm up before the main event.

By the time we reached the gardens, the sun had come out fully as we were joined by the rest of the group. We were delighted to celebrate two big milestones: Aatefa completing her 10th task and Miriam reaching her 50th! To mark this milestone Bekah brought a box of chocolates for Miriam, which she kindly shared with the group. We’re all looking forward to seeing Miriam in her new black GG T-shirt soon!

After a helpful briefing from the Friends of St. James Gardens, we got straight to work in high spirits. Heetu and Sophie did a great job clearing litter to keep the space tidy, while Aatefa, Sallyann, Jess, Pri, and Ellie planted new flowers near the Parliament Street end. It’s always rewarding to add something lasting to the gardens and the new flowers will be a lovely addition for the gardens.

The rest of the team headed to the old towpaths at the back of the gardens, working together to clear branches and foliage from the walls. Some of the branches put up a fight but the team weren't accepting defeat and managed to clear a large section of the walls. This essential maintenance helps preserve the site's history, and the team made light work of it with plenty of chat and energy.

The time really flew by and before we knew it we were back at the Huskisson memorial in the centre of the gardens to wrap up the task under the shadow of the Cathedral. A special thanks from Liam to the rest of the group for making the task go so smoothly. It was really appreciated!

A huge thank you to everyone for your hard work and for making the session so enjoyable—we look forward to seeing you at the next one!

The news has been bad this week so it’s always nice to be able to do something good in the world when everything else seems so out of your control. Even if it is just a small corner doing something feels like getting back a bit of control.

It was a bright fresh spring Saturday morning and Vikky, who is both a GoodGymer and a coordinator for Friends of St James's Gardens had booked us for a task to help keep the gardens fresh for the spring.

Stef, Nasser, Ellie and myself went with Vikky onto the St James’s mount side of the beautiful Anglican Cathedral. We all said it was a part of the gardens we hadn’t realised was there and Vikky explained that it was a part that was often overlooked. For this reason it had become overgrown. We set about litterpicking on the mount and Nasser and Ellie got stuck in pruning back the privet hedge. The litterpicking was wild, the mount had attracted some unwanted attention and there was all manner of crazy items to be found in the bushes from tents to saws. The hedge made great progress. It was very satisfying to see.

Once we finished the task. I had a wander back through the main gardens and saw some of the fruits of our labour from last spring in the shape of some snowdrops looking so beautiful beneath the graves. The news at the moment might be deeply troubling but small shoots remind us that we are not helpless in making change.