Nine Goodgymers set to work tidying and sweeping the back garden at Mencap. Sheila, Viv, Jess Mike and Georgetta weeded, trimned and swept the planter area with lightning speed! Roberta, Ben and Sol dug out weeds and tidied the area near the shed. After yet more sweeping and moss removal the garden is ready for the mencap community and the warmer weather! The evening was rounded off by celebrating Angela's 100 th good deed with a wonderful poem and cake from Amy and Sheila.

....and here is Amy hijacking Angela's report to share the poem:

Angela Shaw: A grade A GoodGymer, to be sure!

Active and athletic!

Altruistic and able!

Agile and adaptable!

So amazing, that even without one of her ‘A’s

She’s an angel.

The only problem with Angela

Is that finding rhymes is a challenge, er…

And the word angel

Is also hard for a poet to wrangle.

Her amazing achievements we cannot ignore,

So thank goodness for her last name, Shaw,

Which rhymes easily with words galore!

Angela’s good deeds now number twenty and fourscore

(Which means 100 in the language of yore)

If she has a spare moment, she doesn’t snore.

She’ll go to Nature’s Haven and sand a door!

She’ll shovel sludge to work her core,

And clear away brambles til her hands are sore.

She’ll give foodshare donations to the store,

But on Balsam and Ragwort she’s waging war!

She picks up litter, she sweeps the floor

And she tidies up plastic from the sea shore!

She put the lantern parade leaflet through your door

And doesn’t even mind a pothole chore!

On paddleboard or bike she loves to explore.

And her cycle abilities are really top drawer:

She teaches bike safety to kids in year 4

And even support rides with Peggy the tri-shaw!

So let’s hear it for this legend of local folklore,

Our faith in humanity she does restore,

Hip hip hooray for Angela Shaw!

10 GoodGymers gathered at the Riverside family hub on a perfect Spring evening to take on the wish list prepared by the task owner. We love a well organised task!

In true GoodGym spirit, we tackled the "Extra hard challenge" first: a very heavy bug hotel which needed moving. Very quickly the group decided this was futile. Even if we could move the bug hotel, it wouldn't go through the gate. The task owner and all present concurred the best thing was to build a new one in the wildlife garden. Maybe we'll get called back for that fun task!

We dispersed onto other things then:

• Viv, Angela and Roberta attacked the bindweed covering the gravel by the main gate.
• Julie took to de-weeding the tractor-tyres-turned-planters and then onto bindweed as well.
• Tony, Sheila, Kanika and Diya weeded the veg patch, the gravel area and the pond side.
• Amy and Jess gave the deck and benches a good scrub.

Once the hard work was done, it was time for some play! Amy and Kanika stretched out on the...mounds (?), Amy did planks on the plank and pretty soon, a circuit took shape! There was running, step ups, tricep pushes and some other activities which involved jumping and a lot of laughing.

Task owner Heather had very kindly set out some refreshments for us. We enjoyed delicious fruits and beverages which was a perfect end to a productive mission.

Five determined GoodGymmers met at the community allotment, ready to take on the challenges set by task leaders Sue and Pat. Armed with gloves, shovels and choppers, they eagerly tackled their to-do list.

Sheila and Christine took on the wild frontier—an area that had become a dumping ground for foliage and weeds. Like gardening warriors, they cleared out the rubbish, sliced through stubborn weeds, and revealed a fresh, tidy patch that’s now ready for planters to bring it to life.

Meanwhile, Viv, Tony, and Jess dug deep—literally! With precision and teamwork, they carved out trenches for runner beans, creating two in bed 7 and three around bed 5. But they didn’t stop there! To give the beans the best possible start, they lined the trenches with newspaper and topped them off with some rich, well-mulched manure. Those beans are in for a treat!

By the time the team packed up, the satisfaction was clear. The allotment had been spruced up, and their efforts will make life easier for the group and its future activities. Digging, teamwork, and a whole lot of chatting—mission accomplished!

Twelve hardy Goodgymmers stepped up to dig up some hard soil to help with ground prep for new flower beds to be put in.

We welcomed two new and travelling Goodgym members, Charlotte and Alice who came down from Amersham.

It was also a special task because we celebrated Louise's 50 good deeds with cake and macaroons kindly brought over by Amy.

The going was tough on the dry hard soil but nothing is ever too tough for this group! Our task owner was very pleased with all the prep work we'd managed.

Hard work done, cake eaten, chatting finished, we all dispersed from another fantastic GG Wednesday mission!

Due to the clocks springing forward at the weekend we enjoyed one of our first evening sessions of the year where head torches weren't required! A chatty hour of clearing ivy, brambles and other weeds from around the gravestones while the sun set behind us. Thanks to everyone (including Amanda from the Church) for coming along!

Viv and Sheila went to help task-owner Sarah with a flower bed she has adopted, just outside the park. The grass has been slowly invading the patch, so the task was to free the plants from the strangle-hold of grass and define the edges so the mowing contractors can easily see the edges. Whilst leaving the plants she wants to keep, of course. The 3 of us working for 90 mins definitely made a difference, and Sarah was very grateful for the help. There is another bed that hasn't even been started yet.....