A beautiful Friday evening was an ideal time for our first ever mission to the Marie Curie hospice in Penarth. We'd been approached by the facilities team looking for help to paint some benches in the sensory garden. The garden is an ideal place for patients, families and staff to spend some time in peace.

Fresh from a coastal wander along the cliffs of Penarth, Fiona and I arrived at the hospice to find Andrew waiting outside, having made the journey from Cardiff Bay at super quick speed (despite the hills!). We reported to reception and went through a few safety procedures, including a temperature check. Despite our pre mission exercise, we all passed with flying colours and were good to go.

We were shown to the sensory garden and began our task by sanding down the benches ready for the paint. After putting down some protective sheets to avoid the drips, we methodically began painting. The benches quickly went from dark brown to green (seamoss to be precise). We chatted along the way about all manner of things, including our camping experiences, tents and marathons / half marathons.

We managed to complete a second bench before calling it a day. This was a really lovely task to end the week and hopefully the first of many missions to Marie Curie.