On Monday evening 23 well insulated runners braved Arctic conditions to volunteer their time to bring some seasonal cheer, decorating Christmas trees at the Lynde House Care Home in Twickenham.

Seldom before has such trepidation been witnessed upon exiting the warm fug of WholeFoods’ cosy dining area, as sharp intakes of breath and the occasional chattering of teeth could be overheard.

Fortunately GG trainer Mark quickly managed to distract the team with his efficient warm up routine, complemented by ice skating lunges, press-up tag games, and finessed by a succession of star jumps. Duly warmed up, the group set off on the night’s mission across the river.

As is custom for relatively nearby venues, an extra leg on the outbound leg was proposed to add “stuffing to the turkey”, so to speak. In this case, the motive was to gain enough elevation to view as many Christmas lights as possible from the top of Nightingale Lane, one of our favourite climbs. Duly crested, we cruised back through town to cross Richmond Bridge, which now felt several degrees warmer than half an hour earlier, followed by an eerily dark riverside leg along the Thames.

The residents and staff at Lynde House gave us a warm welcome upon arrival, albeit tempered by a tinge of disappointment when we explained that we were not in fact visiting them to provide an indoor gymnastics display.

However, within the limited time available we set to work on the task at hand - unpacking fairy lights and baubles to decorate five beautiful Christmas trees, each team styling their creation with unique handwriting. It’s a shame that we won’t be there to see how the residents' eyes will light up tomorrow morning when they wander into the homely lounges and reception areas, however a rousing verse of “We Wish You a Merry Christmas” was sung by the Good Gym chorus to set the Christmas mood.

Wishing you a Merry Christmas from GoodGym Richmond#christmas #carehome #richmond #volunteering #goodgym #volunteering #running #doinggood pic.twitter.com/ZVfGkX4VxD

— GoodGym Richmond (@GGRichmon) December 3, 2019

Duly refuelled with mince pies and hydrating refreshments, the deco-squad returned to Richmond at a steady pace via Twickenham Bridge, completing the 7 Km outing. With another mission accomplished and that familiar feeling of contentment gained from serving our local community some repaired to the pub to celebrate Lenka’s 50th good deed - (congratulations Lenka!) while others no doubt speculated whether perhaps this year would turn out to be a fairytale White Christmas.

Well done to Jessie, Luke and Ellen on your 2nd GoodGym Richmond run and another cheer for all of those who spent the weekend out on various Community Missions.

Happy Running!