A great festive time at Stratford House, where we helped Age UK prepare hampers for elderly people that will be on their own this Christmas. We packed 70 boxes full of chocolates, biscuits, and gifts - and matching handwritten cards to go with them. Now they just need to be delivered!

Four GoodGymers made their way to the borders of Sparkhill and Moseley (also the gateway to the new Clean Air Zone around the city centre) to help at the Age UK headquarters. Located in one of the oldest buildings in Birmingham, dating back to 1603 (with a slightly sordid recent past as we found out later), we were there to revamp the outside space as being indoors for social settings isn’t as welcoming as it used to be.

I began by picking out the weeds from the cracks and brushing everything into piles. But within a minute of getting started, I had broken the broom, which meant that we all had to get down on hands and knees to sweep with the broom handle. Louise got started by pulling up weeds and bagging up the rubbish before moving on to spraying the cracks with weed and moss killer. Liam used the hoe to scrape off the moss which covered the stones and making them slippery. He then went out onto the pavement to litter pick, as the building is positioned in an island of sorts between the ring road and local roads beside it, and there was plenty of evidence of the nearby coffee shops and fast food restaurants. Sofeen took on the task of sanding down and varnishing a bench outside which had seen better days. Considering it had only had the first of four recommended coats, it was already looking a lot more welcoming by the time he finished.

With a good visual sense of achievement, we all set off for home and I joined Liam for a run through a much busier city centre than it had been earlier in the day. Hopefully our efforts will keep the front space looking as good as the building itself. We’ll be back before long to tackle the courtyard behind and possibly give the bench a few more coats.

3 GoodGymers met at Age UK's Dementia Day Care Centre in Sutton Coldfield to pick up some Christmas dinners and hampers for delivery to isolating individuals within the Birmingham area.

We took a few photos of us with the Christmas dinners and hampers/presents before heading off on our way. Balal was supported by his daughter, I had help from my girlfriend and Tousif managed very capably by himself! We had each been assigned a route in which the deliveries were easily listed for us to follow and navigate, although it certainly gave me a greater appreciation for delivery drivers after struggling to locate the first drop-off!

The recipients were very grateful to receive their Christmas dinners and hamper and it was nice to be able to wish them a Merry Christmas and all the best for the New Year. It was great that we were able to assist Age UK with this important task.

Merry Christmas all and here's to hopefully a better 2021! 🎄

Four GoodGym runners returned to the Age UK Dementia Day Care Centre in Sutton Coldfield to clear their grounds of the Autumnal fallen leaves. For Başak, it was her very first GoodGym good deed, having spent the last 2 months in Birmingham, swapping the beautiful surroundings of Gallipoli in Turkey for a soggy car park in the West Midlands. The first mission of the day was for Ben, who ran over to the town centre to find Başak, who was in this area for the first time, and understandably, a little lost. Amy arrived just as they returned to our spot just outside of the town centre, and Ben introduced us all to the clear up task. There was a leaf blower and a lawn mower available to use, but they were left inside as the rain really didn’t make it look like they would be effective. So we got to business, with Amy using a rake to get the fallen leaves off the grass, while Başak and Ben swept the tarmac and I used my gloves to pick up piles of natural matter. As we had filled up the eighth bag to the brim, the rain picked its moment to stop and the sun came out to laugh at us. But we were able to bask in the good we had managed to do, and introduced Başak to the glamour of posing next to bin bags! We were helping again in the hope that this centre can open again in November, which we hope isn’t as unachievable as it appears from the upcoming announcements which we are all anticipating. Yet one way or another, we will be back again at some point to help them bring back a vital facility for people suffering with Dementia which is one of many sorely missed services at this time.