5 Goodgymers joined forces to support the Greenwich & Bexley Community Hospice's annual mini-marathon event for kids. The mission was to help organize and facilitate the event, which celebrated 30 years of the hospice's invaluable end-of-life care. 💜

Despite a slight setback due to a flat tire on the event van, our team's spirits remained high. After a brief delay, we swiftly unloaded the essential equipment and set up the event area. From boxes of medals to barriers and inflatable archways, each item was meticulously arranged, offering both a physical and mental workout.💪

As the event space took shape, participants and spectators flooded in, signaling a bustling day ahead. The atmosphere was buzzing with the DJ and Rock Choir setting the stage warming up the crowd. Our Goodgymers seamlessly transitioned into stewardship roles, guiding the excited runners to the start line, managing the crowd and addressing inquiries. A highlight was the royal presence of the King and Queen Pearly for the race start countdown adding an extra touch of grandeur to the proceedings.🤴👸🇬🇧

Well done to all participants, parents, and volunteers whose collective efforts made the event success. Your support will undoubtedly make a meaningful difference in the lives of those served by the Greenwich & Bexley Community Hospice.

Wowee, Wednesday night saw it all! One of our largest turn outs this year, and two new faces joining our ranks - well done Franki and Yuliia on your first group run. We had a lovely task ahead of us in our favourite location, but before we headed to the task we quickly went around and discovered how we would fight our enemies. A lot of the team chose ways that would bore their enemies and an overall preference for using their special talents. Great to see a lack of violence other than my mind when thinking up the ice breaker.

Following a juicy little warm up we headed off through Charlton. We wound our way through the residential streets onto the bike path that takes us straight to the side entrance. The back half of the group did get disconnected but, I, your brave leader journeyed back to reconcile the two groups and lead us into the warmth of the Maritime Museum's Collection Center.

Matt greeted us and showed us the purpose of our task, which was to take down ceiling tiles, which then the golden age group would "gild". The tiles came from a special room in a separate building, where the records and archives are stored. The tiles are part of a room for discovery for younger visitors. The task was large and we started a chain, but not before intellectually planning how we would identify the panels and their homes in the roof. The time passed very quickly and all of a sudden it was time to head back to Charlton House.

The group managed to stick together this time and we got back with time for a good stretch and a chat. See you all next time folks, keep plugging away at the good deeds as we are in close contention with our group for the January Challenge!

In hindsight, we couldn’t find it. Litter. At the great December litter pick, where was the litter?

We met by Charlton House, grand and stately (the house, I mean), and we chatted about plenty things, but mostly the cold. Because the thermostat dial had plummeted and there were icicles forming on the ends of our noses. Huddled, and moved from the grass to avoid some spontaneous forming dog muck, we discussed French pronunciation.

Blan-C-mange, said Alex. Bluh-monj, said everyone else.

A popular dessert in the eighties, but apparently not since, we considered other sweet culinary delights and we indulged and imagined what type of dessert we were. In GoodGym Greenwich, as you might have suspected, we’re an incredibly sweet group comprising a flan, a tiramisu, an apple crumble, a pavlova, a jelly, and an ice-cream sundae!

But not sugar-coating it, the area started to stink due to the spontaneous forming dog muck, and so we moved to the Charlton House green. Here, we warmed up with an improvised version of Stuck In The Mud – with a shouted ‘1!’, Julian chased us, but we could only walk, and we pumped our arms and legs furiously and it felt like we were flying, but we were actually moving really quite slowly – with a bellowed ‘2!’, we side-stepped until our adductor muscles nearly detached from our thighs – and with a ‘3!’, we sprinted around and around and around (until Julian or Chan caught us)!

Warmed and out of breath, we headed to Charlton’s Queen Elizabeth Hospital where unfortunately there’s quite a lot of ‘litter’. And I’m talking fast food waste, discarded masks, and other bits of rubbish. And there was plenty to fill bin bags with, which we got to in teams of three so that either side of the road got a good and healthy sprucing.

But – litter! I thought we were out to find litter! In the traditional sense of the word, etymologically meaning BED, from the Latin, lectus. I thought I was going to have a nice sleep – a great December sleep!! And I was mighty tired, and it was awfully cold, but instead – we picked up rubbish. I’ll have words with the run leader, I can assure you…

Still, by 8pm, us two teams had picked two bin bags of ‘litter’, and we headed back to Charlton House along much cleaner and healthier roads. Great work everyone and looking forward to the next time!