In purposeful Enid Blyton style, five GoodGymers met at Colchester Foodbank to prepare parcels for families who are without meal vouchers this half term.

No Timmy the dog, but we heard the high-jinks tales of James' mid-trained puppy! No ginger beer, but a good stock of ginger biscuits to add to the parcels! No rural adventure, but a no less worthy mission to undertake. And, as per the well known stories, all centred around the school holidays when - sadly - a considerable number of parents will struggle without the benefit of a school meal or food vouchers to compensate.

Mikaela took the vital role of 'picker' and Alistair and Robin each took a scale for the weighing, packing and labelling. James carried the finished crates to the storage container where he sorted lifted and stacked, also refilling stock in the picking aisle when needed. The team were fantastic. With a really concentrated effort we managed a total of 38 food parcels in two hours. Very well done - you are indeed the Famous Five!

Michael (Foodbank Chief Executive) was thrilled with our efforts and passes on his customary thumbs up. GoodGym's help has significantly boosted the stock of parcels needed to tide residents over next week's half term. It has also relieved the workoad for regular Foodbank staff who can focus on the very busy task of issuing these supplies. It is expected that requests from schools in the area could reach about 420, so this is a certainly a big assignment.

It was lovely to see you all this afternoon and thanks for bringing your energy and willingness. A special GoodGym welcome to Robin who has returned after a busy study time, for just his second task ; we hope to see you again soon. In these troubling times, it's a joy to see GoodGymers out in their red tees, linking with each other, with the community and with the importance of keeping ourselves fit.

Keep safe, keep connected and keep moving!