The Everton Community Garden Autumn Auction is a GoodGym fixture, and for good reason. Steph was so keen to get to the auction that she arrived on Thursday night mistakenly — a whole day early

GoodGym takes us all over the city, working with lots of different community groups and projects. At Everton Community Garden, we’ve done plenty of work over the years, so it’s lovely to be invited back — this time not to work, but as guests at their annual autumn auction. John and Hilary, have always been incredibly welcoming and supportive of GoodGym. Together with all the volunteers, they’ve created such a special place, and it’s lovely that the relationship we’ve built through doing work there means we’re now able to come along and enjoy evenings like this too.

After attending a number of open evenings strangers have become familiar faces, acquaintances, and friends, and every time we return we seem to know more people. Couple this with Jo unexpectedly meeting an old friend and it gives a sense of the warmth of the atmosphere.

The garden was looking glorious: a lush oasis, bursting with fruit, vegetables and flowers. Although the day had started with rain the evening was dry with a warm breeze bringing a breath of autumn with it. There was music, conversation, burgers and hot dogs being cooked and delicious homemade crumbles made from the fruits of everyone’s labours. Jo became the Crumble Ambassador, on hand to direct everyone towards the delicious offerings.

Bekah discovered a jostaberry a cross between a gooseberry and a blackcurrant and promptly bought some homemade jam made from it. After time for an amble around the garden and lots of chat it was time for the famous auction.

Brio, the auctioneer, swapped his informal shorts and top for a dapper top hat and tails — and kept everyone entertained while the GoodGymers did their bit: getting the bidding started, nudging prices higher and throwing in the occasional extra pound causing some good humoured bidding wars. It’s important to have people willing to get things moving, but it’s equally important to have people who get completely carried away and start enthusiastically bidding for things they perhaps didn’t know they wanted, needed or even realised existed. I may have fallen into that last category.

Among the goods being bid for were crock pots, wooden bench and planters and the Goodgym famous tromboncino a ridiculous shaped squash that resembles a trombone a swan or a question mark dependent on how you hold it. But, as Jo pointed out, tromboncinos are 'so last year.'. The Turk’s Turban squash absolutely outran it in the beauty stakes. Of course both had to be gained by someone.... not to be named

Once the auction was over, there was still plenty to enjoy. Aatefa picked grapes straight from the vine — 20p a bunch. How much fresher can you get? Steph and I went trombocino spotting, Bekah was busy organising a social diary date and Jo talking to old friends and new.

How quickly the night went. Aatefa left with her grapes, Sally-Anne had her auction haul safely escorted home by Bekah via Uber yes there was that much, Jo cycled off into the night and Steph retraced her journey home from yesterday's unexpected dry run

What a lovely way to spend an evening. And that’s what GoodGym is all about: turning up, getting stuck in, building relationships with communities across the city, and becoming part of something bigger than ourselves.

If you’ve never joined us, come along. You might arrive feeling like a stranger, but that feeling doesn’t last for long. And you never know, you might even get to play a trombocino.

Some GoodGym sessions have you running. Some have you gardening. And every so often, if you’re lucky, you get both in one evening. That’s exactly how six GoodGymers ended up trading trainers for trowels, joining Hope and Adrian to give the planters along Smithdown Road some care and attention. The brief was simple: weed, tidy, top up the soil and pick up any litter along the way. Liam, Fred and I started the evening with a run from the Liverpool Women’s Hospital area towards the traffic island where Ullet Road meets Smithdown Road, where the rest of the group was waiting. Once everyone had gathered, Liam took us through the safety guidance, making sure we all knew how to work safely around the traffic. Hope then talked to us through the task and explained what needed to be done. With the safety briefing complete, the instructions clear and the gloves on, we were ready to get stuck in. We started at the traffic island itself, coaxing the planters back from “a bit wild” to something genuinely lovely. We pulled out the weeds, added fresh soil, and gave everything a proper tidy. From there, we worked our way along Smithdown Road, planter by planter, weeding, trimming and maintaining the plants, while also clearing litter from the surrounding areas. Ten planters later, the road was looking noticeably brighter for it. There was a small milestone worth mentioning too: Amina turned up with her own new pair of gardening gloves for the very first time! A proper GoodGym rite of passage. The gloves were on, the weeds were warned, and there was no turning back. A Blooming Good Session It really was a good bloom session. There’s something quietly uplifting about working your way along a row of flowerbeds. The more we cleared, the more colour seemed to spring back to life around us, as though the plants were paying us back in kind for the attention. We’d started at a traffic island, but happily there wasn’t a hint of a jam. Instead, there was steady progress from planter to planter, with soil under our nails and the road looking better with every stop. The plants were putting down roots, while the GoodGymers were putting in the graft. And as for the weeds? They never stood a chance. Wrong place, wrong time, and definitely not part of the plan. Between pulling weeds, hauling soil, trimming plants and picking up litter, everyone found their part in the effort. There was plenty of enthusiasm throughout, and by the time we moved further along the road, Smithdown was beginning to look as though it was smiling back at us. The flowers may have been the ones doing the blooming, but there were plenty of smiles blooming among the GoodGymers too. Putting Down Roots, Then Running Home We wrapped up a few minutes ahead of schedule, with 10 planters looking brighter, the surrounding pavements tidier, and Hope and Adrian’s Smithdown in Bloom project given another helping hand. With the gardening done and the weeds well and truly defeated, it was time to swap the trowels back for trainers. Liam and I ran back to the area where we had started, bringing the evening neatly full circle. We had begun by running towards Smithdown, spent the middle of the session among the flowerbeds, and finished by running back with that satisfying kind of tiredness that comes from knowing you’ve left somewhere a little better than you found it. A big thank you to Hope and Adrian for organising and guiding us through the task, and to Liam for taking us through the safety guidance and keeping everything running smoothly. And, of course, a big well done to everyone who turned up, got their hands dirty and helped make the evening such a good one. It’s a nice reminder that small deeds can add up to something real: a few pairs of gloves, some fresh soil, a group willing to get stuck in, and a stretch of road that feels a little brighter for everyone who walks past it. We arrived on foot, stayed to dig in, put down some roots, pulled out a few weeds, and left Smithdown blooming. From sole to soil and back again, not a bad way to spend an evening.

On a damp, overcast afternoon, Liam and Aatefa met at Williamson Square at 11:30 to support Savera UK's march through Liverpool city centre to raise awareness of honour based abuse. Although the dark clouds threatened rain - and delivered a light drizzle to keep everyone refreshed - the weather largely held off long enough for the afternoon to get off to an incredible start. The march kicked off with a burst of high energy courtesy of the fantastic Katumba drummers, whose vibrant rhythms set a powerful, upbeat tone for the day. Before starting off, the crowd gathered to hear a moving opening speech from Afrah Qassim, founder and CEO of Savera UK. With the march underway, the group marched through the heart of Liverpool, making their way up Church Street and Bold Street toward the iconic Bombed Out Church (St Luke’s), drawing enthusiastic attention and solidarity from shoppers and passersby along the route. Liam and Aatefa served as marshals along the procession, keeping the group safe, organized, and moving smoothly through the busy city streets. Though the rain grew heavier as the afternoon wore on, it failed to dampen the spirits of those attending. The march culminated at the Bombed Out Church for a cultural event featuring inspirational speeches from MP Naz Shah and Afrah Qassim, alongside a lineup of wonderful performance artists. Ultimately, the event was a resounding success, doing crucial work to raise awareness around honour based abuse and stand in solidarity with victims and survivors. The determination of everyone involved proved that even a heavy Liverpool downpour couldn't wash away such an important message. To learn more about their vital mission, access support services, or get involved, please visit the official Savera UK website: https://www.saverauk.co.uk/

To complement our parkrun super Sticker Saturday, GoodGym Liverpool has taken to the occasional "Parkrun on Holiday". This time, we were ticking off "C" on the Parkrun alphabet and heading to the coast for the Crosby Parkrun.

This extra run was arranged by Clara, and Clara's phenomenal organisational skills soothe my soul. She'd ascertained attendees, sorted a WhatsApp group so we could stay in touch without spamming the main group, and shared all the important information including public transport options, parking, amenities, and event schedule in advance so we all knew exactly what we were doing. As a fairly organised person myself, it's an absolute pleasure to attend a session Clara has arranged so thank you Clara for all your hard work in keeping us all together ♥️

The weather forecast was looking, shall we say temperamental, and Clara and I met early at the leisure centre and sheltered under the cover. We were soon joined by Liam and Aatefa and headed to the briefing point, where we were given the first-timers brief including the turnaround point at the iron man statue the Parkrun Crosby team have affectionately named Bing (get it?).

We were soon joined by Amina and got the all important group photo. Liam was nearly in hot water for not sporting his GoodGym t-shirt, but when it transpired he'd recently completed his 25th Parkrun, and was debuting the much sought after 25th purple t shirt on this, his 26th parkrun, all was forgiven.

It was then time for the general brief and GoodGym got a shout out welcome as parkrun tourists. One of the volunteers was celebrating her 400th time volunteering, a phenomenal achievement.

And off we went! The weather was kinder to us than expected, there was a little light drizzle mid-run but nowhere near the expected downpours ⛈️. It's quite a challenging course, running first on the sand (the 'out' was fine as the sand was quite firm, the 'back' much harder as the sand was more clay-like and sticky). We were all glad to reach solid ground for the section along the prom, up to the lifeguard station and back. Along the prom, one of the friendly volunteers was high-fiving us with Sweep, a beloved puppet from the children's show Sooty & Sweep. Then came the most challenging section of all - grass!

We all regrouped at the finish line, 25km completed between us. Amina had done well to make the run and had to get back for her bank holiday weekend plans, the rest of us headed for a Goodgym-style breakfast at a local cafe 🍳

Somehow despite the super challenging course, Aatefa had STILL managed to maintain her new sub-30 minute streak with an amazing time of 29:18. And I learnt it had actually been my 25th Parkrun! Might look into that purple t-shirt...

I certainly wouldn't have so many under my belt without the Goodgym Sticker Saturdays, so thank you GG Liverpool for endless motivation to get out running on a Saturday morning, and thank you Clara, Aatefa, Amina and Liam for a lovely morning of seaside fresh air, exercise, and a lovely cafe (particularly one that serves an iced matcha latte with coconut milk 💚).

We said goodbye and Aatefa and Liam made their way back to the city centre for ANOTHER Goodgym session, this time volunteering at the Savera march and festival. Well done guys what an amazing effort 🌟 But that's another report...

It was such a beautiful morning with Goldilocks weather; not too warm, not too cold. The leaves were turning golden and the grass was getting its green back after some much needed rain. Bekah, Fred and I met at the ping pong table in Princess park. We made our way to the start line. Steph was waiting on the route to take pictures and cheer us on. Aatefa joined the throng as announcements were finished and the run was underway. I jogged one lap and bowed out. I sat on a bench to wait for the others. I saw Fred cross the finish line at 26 mins past! He looked cool as a cucumber and I was amazed at his composure after running such an impressive time… then he told me that he’d only done two laps; well, you’ve got to ease yourself into these things and as I had also shortened the run, I was in no place to judge! Aatefa ran just over 29 mins, about 30secs over. She was disappointed with the extra 30 seconds as 29 had been her PB to beat but we all agreed that anything under 30 is a win. Bekah came in at 33 mins which is also a sterling effort. Steph came and joined us from her spot where she had managed to get some action shots and we headed for breakfast at one of our favourite spots; the coffee lodge on lodge lane. Steph opened a birthday card and present from Sallyann at the cafe, some lovely socks and a beautiful card designed by a Liverpool artist. After a delicious breakfast Bekah went to pick up some Baklava on Lodge Lane, Steph and Aatefa headed home and Fred and I walked back to Old Swan where we realised we were virtually neighbours! A lovely morning, perfect weather, lovely food, great company. Sticker Saturdays are the best :)