Sunday saw us back at Woolwich Common for the monthly litter pick. We met at the Old College cafe with tales of the upcoming Greenwich Peninsula parkrun and cakes to celebrate Jennys 499th good deed (amazing work Jenny) before making our way off into the sunshine to the Common. On arrival we split into 4 or 5 groups and made our way in different directions, encountering different amounts of litter depending on which way we went. After an hour we were done, leaving the common a lot cleaner than when we started

At our monthly sessions at the Community Hospice the head gardener, Jason, always has lots for us to do.

Today we were clearing brambles and nettles from a corner of the garden that had gone feral.

Sturdy gloves are always useful for tasks like this, but Jason's supply of yellow leather gauntlets were a gamechanger! The prickly and stinging plants didn't stand a chance!

It was a big patch, but we got about half done: check out the before and after photos above! The rest will have to wait until next month.

Just as it was time to finish there were a few spots of rain in the air, so we quickly put the tools - and gauntlet gloves - away and some of us headed to the Hospice canteen for a tasty lunch and lots more varied conversation.

I wonder if I should ask for a pair of those gloves on my Christmas list!

we were back at Box3Education, a new initiative which recently secured a unit in The Mall, Bexleyheath that will house their free design school, community coffee shop, and art gallery.

After meeting up with Levi outside the shopping mall we made our way into the centre.

Lots had been done since our last visit and things were beginning to take shape!

We all got stuck in with the painting. Ashton was our mentor as he knows a bit about technique. We got so much done in a short space of time. There was also a lot of chatting with Gemma and Monika our newest members - we look forward to seeing them again!

A lighthearted report from last night’s leafletting task, inspired by Lisa joking that we were the Four Musketeers...

It was a brisk, dark evening when four valiant GoodGymers took to the streets, armed not with swords, but with leaflets promoting the Community Hospice’s Boogie Wonderland, a fundraising party night. The quartet's quest: to spread the word, one letterbox at a time, before the forecast rain could test their courage.

Jogging merrily along, the fearless foursome deployed a tactical masterpiece known only to the most elite of leaflet couriers — the leapfrog manoeuvre. With impeccable coordination (and plenty of chatting), they moved swiftly from house to house, ensuring not a single front door was missed (with the utmost respect, of course, for 'No junk mail' stickers).

Their out-and-back route conquered, the chivalrous posse posed for the all-important post-task photo — a tradition as sacred as any Musketeer oath. It was then that Lisa, inspired by their gallant efforts, bestowed upon them noble names fit for legends: Saros, Johnamis, Lisos, and the dashing M’Artagnon.

No sooner had the photo been snapped than the skies began to weep; perhaps tears of joy at such heroism. The Four Muskateers, ever undaunted, headed home glad to have been of service. After all, a little precipitation could never dampen the spirits (or the plumed hats) of their new alter egos.

All for one, and one for all — and all for the Community Hospice!

(With apologies to Alexandre Dumas and credit to ChatGPT)

A pocketful of crocuses, and a mission with meaning — that’s how GoodGym Bexley spent the morning at the Old English Garden in Danson Park.

Armed with trowels, teamwork, and a lot of enthusiasm, we joined forces to plant around 2,000 purple crocus bulbs, kindly donated by the local Rotary Club.

But these weren’t just any bulbs — each one carries a message. The purple crocus is the symbol of Rotary’s End Polio Now campaign, chosen because of the purple dye used to mark the little finger of a child who’s received the polio vaccine during mass immunisation. That little purple pinkie shows they’ve been protected — a small mark with a powerful meaning. 💜

So, in spring Danson Park will be dotted with thousands of tiny reminders of hope, health, and community spirit.

We left with muddy hands, full hearts, and the satisfying thought that every bloom will tell a story of kindness and care — just the GoodGym way. 🌱💪

Sunday morning means junior parkrun and we were at Eltham Park lending a hand as marshals, timekeeping and barcode scanning.

Eighty five young runners and five happy GoodGymers alongside the other hi-viz volunteers.

See you there next week?