On a bracing, but sunny, Thursday morning we joined the Sanctuary Runners for an out-and-back 8km run past the Marina. After meeting in the pay-what-you-can Fitzherbert Hub cafe, we were introduced to Nick who runs the club. Sanctuary Runners is an inclusive environment, focussing on integration and social bridging, to bring together people from all backgrounds but particularly to help integrate those who have arrived seeking sanctuary and safety. Nick's is training the group for a 10km run in April, and there were all levels of abilities ranging from walkers to those running a quick pace.

Everyone did at least 15 minutes out and then another 15 back at their own paces, and we reconvened for a delicious meal in the cafe afterwards. The cafe is all run by volunteers from the Real Junk Food Brighton project and the food was delicious.

The Sanctuary Runners are going to continue running every Thursday (plus other days too) in the lead-up to their big event, so we'll have plenty more opportunities to run with them!

Sanctuary Runners is a solidarity-through-sport initiative founded in Ireland and launched in Brighton by Tim Holtan in July 2024. It uses running, jogging and walking to bring together asylum seekers, refugees, migrants and all residents - a Good Initiative, that Brighton GoodGym is happily partnering with.

Usually, we run alongside other Brighton Sanctuary Runners at Saturday's Preston Park parkruns.

We are now also running together at their Thursday's weekday session as an additional opportunity to share our 'Solidarity, Friendship and Respect' by bringing Our Smile to ALL, including whom arrived in our city seeking safety and sanctuary.

Yesterday was a special gathering for Brighton Sanctury Runners with its extended family of other community runners and walkers in Brighton & Hove, including pro-marathon runners from London Marathon Events and our friends from Run & Rave, who brought spark and music to our 5K evening run altogether on the Brighton seafront. The inspiring welcoming words of Joe and Graham, one of the founders of Sanctuary Runner, and even more warming living testimony of our friend and table tennis player, Alban, strengthened our sense of togetherness in bridging the gap among culture and language diversities thought our shared passion for moving united!

We could not miss this, in full GoodGym spirit, so Stefania and Sarah happily joined the run with this new Brighton family and the after-run celebration with a Good feast prepared by our other friends of the Real Junk Food Project.

We will be back soon here for another GoodGym Brighton’s community group run and mission!

See WHAT's ON NEXT at GoodGym Brighton.

As part of Brighton & Hove TAKEPART Festival of Active Living, Brighton Goodgymmers participated in a group session organised jointly by our friends from Brighton Table Tennis Club, Real Junk Food Project and the Catholic Parish of East Brighton at the Fitzherbert Community Hub.

Thirteen of the best Brighton Goodgym gang showed up and we welcomed not one, not two but three first time participants: Majed, Nick and Irene.

The session also falls on Refugee Week a festival celebrating the contributions, creativity and resilience of refugees and people seeking sanctuary. Brighton Table Tennis Club (BTTC) has become a Club of Sanctuary, welcoming refugees and asylum seekers since 2016 and Brighton Goodgym has always had members very passionate about supporting people from all backgrounds and participating in events and walks welcoming refugees and others to our lovely city.

Personally speaking as a third generation refugee; someone who was born with a piece of paper instead of a passport as a form of identity I think sometimes we tend to forget what the word Refugee means. Refugee is defined as a person who has been forced to leave their country in order to escape war, persecution, or natural disaster. But the definition tends to forget the human tragedy that comes with the fact that a human is called 'Refugee'.

Being a refugee means that somehow you no longer have a home but at the same time everywhere is home!

You are welcomed by many but the voices of those who dont want you are louder.

Governments don't know what to do with you, it feels like wherever you go you carry with you oversized luggage that exceeds the 'allowed' limit.

If you are having too much fun in your new 'home' you feel guilty because of those who couldn't have the same opportunity, if you end up closing up on yourself to heal your wounds then you are labelled as anti-social and failing to integrate in the society.

You do your best to learn the language of your new home but when you do you realise that you missed out on a history of social references that you have no idea about. Like what is Eurovision? Who is Kate Bush? What is Rhubarb? and dont get me started on sayings and expressions, when I first heard 'The Writing on the Wall' I was looking around to see who and where they scribbled on the wall!

But then when you take a moment and look around you and see your fellow Goodgym people in their red Goodgym tshirts playing table tennis, laughing and feeling jolly after they have completed the voluntary session of sweeping, cleaning and weeding...you realise...that you are home...Brighton is home :)