Southwark News

• I still have some community places (£10 bargain!) for the Big Half. Send me an email to get the discount code lucyj@goodgym.org

• This weekend is Super Saturday! Come join us at Southwark parkrun for a 9am start and then come to a starter session to Surrey Docks Farm, leaving from Southwark park cafe at 10.20am. Not only all of this but we'll be celebrating Southwark's third birthday!

• Victoria turned 50 at the beginning of January and is now on 52 good deeds. That's a lot of good! Give her a cheer.

• Next week we're filling a skip at Southwark Tigers. It's a 6km run overall.

That's enough of the business

Last night 19 runners ran 5.5km overall to visit our friends at Crisis charity shop on Denmark Hill. We arrived at half seven on the dot. Anca was amazed at how many of us there were (great job!) and set up to work.

A big hello and welcome to Sharon, Frances, Aurelia and Sharon who joined us for the first time last night!

We split into two main groups:

• Visual merchandising - colour coding the display wall, arranging the jewellry displays, dressing a manequin

• Sorting donations - over the festive period Crisis were inundated with an amazing amount of donations. We sorted sellable form non-sellable and set out for recycling any toys or electrical items. There was also a team pricing books.

So many tasks to get done!

Team Donations sorted 64.4 lbs of non-sellable items for recycling. Solid work!

We got to work, finding all kinds of great items as we went, including a 'Wodent Wheel' which Dom commented

"Looks wheely valuable"

There was no way we'd get through all the fresh donations but we made a serious dent, Helena and Matt dressed a manequin as... of course... a runner! Great to have a GoodGym representative at the shop long-term!

Last but not least - places for Brighton Half and London Landmarks Half with the amazing Terence Higgins Trust at a special rate for GoodGymers

Terrence Higgins Trust is the leading and largest HIV and sexual health charity in the UK. We offer a range of services, from testing to counselling, fund life-changing research, and campaign for a world where people with HIV live healthy lives free from prejudice and discrimination, and good sexual health is a right and reality for all.

• Brighton Half: Sunday 24th February - Discount reg fee £10 (from £25) - Minimum sponsorship £200 • London Landmarks Half: Sunday 24th March - Discount reg fee £10 (from £30) - Minimum sponsorship £350

We'll be there to support you every step of the way! Here's what to expect: a welcome pack, THT t-shirt, a personalised THT running vest, regular email updates with training and fundraising tips, on the day support to cheer you to the finish line, and an invite to our “#TeamTHT Thank You Party" later in the year.

If this is the perfect challenge for you, get in touch with Laura laura.stock@tht.org.uk

Great work team, see you next week!

Southwark News

• Next week our group run is to the Crisis charity shop in Camberwell. It's 6km overall and we'll be joined by a journalist and photographer who are interested in giving back to the community and acts of kindness costing nothing. Let me and them know if you don't want to be in photos/involved. Sign up for the run here. Next week is also the third Wednesday of the month so it's our social. We'll be heading right next door to Batch after the run for a drink.

• Saturday 19th Jan is a big one for us! We'll be celebrating our third birthday, running/volunteering at Southwark parkrun and going to Surrey Docks Farm for mucking out, sweeping and animal time. I can't wait! Sign up to join us at parkrun here and for the starter session (all welcome!) to Surrey Docks Farm here.

• This Saturday is the next Cross Country fixture at Wormwood Scrubs. If you're part of the GoodGym Race Team come and join us! It's not as hilly as other courses so it's a great intro to the muddy fun of XC! Find out more here.

• Sunday Jan 13th is the GoodGym long run. Fancy getting some longer kms in with friendly faces and food at the end? It's going from Kew Bridge to Richmond for 18km, there's also a 13km option. Find out more and sign up here.

• I have 25 community place for the Big Half to shift! This means that instead of costing £40 they're an amazing £10! If you or anyone you know is interested in a place, whizz me an email and I'll send you the discount code - lucyj@goodgym.org - the more the merrier!

That's enough of the business

Last night a whopping 23 runners gathered at Old Spike Roastery with two missions in mind: Chopping, shovelling, sawing and snapping at Galleywall Nature Reserve and collecting abandoned Christmas Trees for the recycling point at Telegraph Hill Park.

There was an excited hum in the air in Old Spike, I have to say, it's good to be back! Helena took a sub team out to collect christmas trees to go off to a farm over on Telegraph Hill - watch the video and follow us on instagram here, whilst I lead 17 of us to our friends at Galleywall Nature Reserve.

A huge hello to Sasha, Chris, Lucy, Amelia, Sophie, Jenny and Gillian (core blimey that's a lot!) who all joined us for their first ever good deed this week. Woop woop!

Once we arrived at Galleywall we were met by Christine who promptly to set work: Sawing a large branch into logs for the fire, axing smaller bits of wood for kindling (tunrs out this takes a very special technique), shovelling compost from the compost bins into bags, breaking down branches and bagging them for kindling. The sawing was viewed with a little trepidation at first but soon the excitement and satisfaction of sawing yourself a bit of log over took. Lots of cheering happened as we blasted through the large brand provided to us and then went on to polish off another one. Amazing work! Many bags of kindling were collected and the compost bins very nearly completely emptied into bags.

Amazing work everyone! You can now add carpentry to your CV.

Unfortunately we couldn't stay for tea as we were a little late getting back to let the sub team into Old Spike, we found them hiding out in Batch next door with Gin and Beer (see photo) which looked like so much fun we joined them afterwards.

Subteam Christmas Collection gathered 14 trees! Great work!

Apparently it was slim pickings for trees until just before Helena's team headed back so well done on a big collection. It will help many a person trying to get down Christmas-Tree-jammed pavements and make sure the trees have a happy new life.

Phewf, a lot going on last night! And what a lot of fun! See you next week.

Lucy J