Defying graffiti

We have been trying to paint the garage in the playground at St Edmund Campion Catholic Primary school for a long time. First it was Covid-19 that stopped us, then it was the weather, but this evening (our third attempt) we finally struck gold! Or rather, we struck 2 large tins of a lovely pale duck egg blue. Paint no stopping us now!

The garage had been decorated with graffiti-style artwork as part of a school dance project, and at the time the impact was cheerful and fun, but it was time for a new look. The paint went on very smoothly, accompanied by chatter that flowed from Mexico to Hong Kong via Twyford and Poland. The finished article looked neat and fresh, all ready for the new term in September. Team Paint included Wednesday night regulars Amy, Ana and Sophie, as well as first-timers Claire and Sara - a very warm welcome to you both!

Weeds still don't need no education

The need for social distancing meant that we couldn't squeeze as many painters around the garage as we might have done, but rather than uninvite half the team we spread out and got stuck into some more weeding - a task we very much enjoyed here a few weeks ago. St Edmund Campion parent Clare decided to focus on an area that had once been a wildflower garden to attract pollinators, but now resembled the Amazon.

Clare was accompanied by a dream team including St Edmund Campion teaching assistant Miss Vanessa and Slough TaskForce member Sara - with an impressive 88 missions under her belt and a super aerator tool up her sleeve, no weed is safe when she's around!

As the garage painting neared completion, painters joined in with the weeding, and the area was transformed. Seeing this kind of transformation is very inspiring. It opens your eyes to new possibilities, and as you sweep up from one job you start planning the next, so I'm sure it won't be long before we are back to do more at this lovely primary school.

A refreshing bit of countryside and normality

After the task Amy, Ana, Sophie, Claire and Sara went for a 4km run, looping through Woolly Firs and the Thicket. It was so refreshing to escape into the countryside! We chatted about Parkrun, reminisced about childhood visits to local haunts, and Ana got some inspiration for family cycle routes. This was the first time Sara had run in a long time and at the end Amy asked how she felt.

With a big smile on her face, Sara said it was just wonderful to get out and do something active and social. In contrast to months dominated by the Covid-19 pandemic, GoodGym was a refreshing taste of normality - we feel you Sara!

TaskForce - making Good things happen

Have you heard the word TaskForce and wondered what its all about? TaskForce are GoodGym members who want to do more to develop their GoodGym community and make Good things happen. Our fantastic member Sophie has agreed to join TaskForce, so you will see her leading some missions and writing some run reports in due course. Please give her a big cheer!

If you are interested in joining TaskForce you can read more about it by clicking here and talking to Amy. You should receive an email inviting you to train as TaskForce after you've done 10 Good Deeds, but your first TaskForce mission may well be retrieving said email from your junk folder...