Bamboozled

8 Goodgymers helped their local community in Hackney
Ishbel Mackenzie
Yagiz Onat
Audrey
Sooz
Nathan Taylor
John Shirley
anne malcolm
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Hackney

Sunday 23rd March

Credits
Sooz
Sooz

SESSION ORGANISER

anne malcolm
anne malcolm

PHOTOGRAPHER

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Report written by anne malcolm

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With spring just round the corner, there was plenty to do in the Mary Seacole Nursing Home garden and there was a wonderful bumper crop of GoodGymers on hand to help out. Particular shoutout goes to Ishbel, who joined us today for her first ever GoodGym task.

The session started with three working groups. The first were tasked with planting a number of bamboo plants along the back fence to soften the view. John, Audrey, Louise and Yaz soon realised that the soil could have done with some softening up too but with considerable effort and perseverance, they got the ground prepped for planting.

Meanwhile, the second group (variously Sooz, Nathan, Grace and Anne) got stuck in to prepping the planters in the middle of the garden for a fresh lick of paint. This task required a special trip to the local supplier of heavy duty sandpaper and wire brushes (thank you Nathan).

The main event, however, was the grand gazebo assembly, for which there was considerable prep-work. So the third group (which comprised a shifting membership of helpers needing a break from digging and sanding), got stuck in, painting bitumen onto the Gazebo's feet to protect against the wet soil and the elements, while task leader, Varda, diligently studied the instructions to ensure everything was assembled correctly.

During this time, a tug of war broke out in bamboo corner, with several GoodGymers trying to liberate pot-bound bamboos. The comment, 'It's like the turnip story', required some explanation but did ring bells when retold.

Eventually, the point we had all been waiting for came, when bits of gazebo had to be attached to one another. The two 'short' sides (3m long) were assembled first and then moved into location, before the longer beams were added to hold the short sides together. Ladders and chairs were enlisted to give the height necessary to put bolts in place. The morning finished with the dance of the heavy-weight lifters, to nudge and jiggle and ultimately maneouver the now tall, heavy, and rather awkward structure into a reasonably stable position.

It was agreed this was as far as we could progress the gazebo assembly for today (step 5 of 26!) so look out for more listings to play your part in the making of the gazebo very soon!

A big thanks and well done to everyone who who came along this morning and got stuck in. It was great fun and a real team effort.


This task supported
Growing Together
Providing a safe green space in which both staff and residents (of Mary Seacole Nursing Home) can benefit from outdoor space

Provides a safe green space for residents and staff can enjoy the nursing home garden. This project also aims to include secondary school aged children to volunteer with the residents of the nursing home. The nursing home has 50 beds, 7 of which are neuro-rehab beds. The nursing home is run by Homerton Health care NHS Foundation Trust.

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Discuss this report
Sooz

Sun 23rd Mar at 7:37pm

Great report! Definitely more tasks to come 🤣🙈

Join us on our next session

Southwark

GoodGym x Friday Night Lights: Tower of London community garden
🗓Tomorrow 9:45am

Be part of a massive eco-renovation project

+19
ALICIARuro UmukoroApril May CaparasManuel BrunaGabriela Cocco
24 GoodGymers are going - 56 spaces left! 👀