5 Goodgymers joined taskowner Karen and another volunteer at Spital Cemetery for the first workparty of the year And we couldn't have picked a more beautiful day! Sheila, Christina, Tessa and Mary worked on revealing a gravestone from the brambles that were engulfing it. Eventually we were able to read the lettering- the headstone commemorated Helen Poraz, who died at the age of sixteen in 1887 and we think hailed from Courtachy in Scotland. Meanwhile Sue and Maggie worked in the woodland area, clearing the paths and they created a huge deadwood pile using several trunks and large branches, supplemented with smaller branches. This was partly buried with some clods of earth shoveled by Tessa, which will be great for wildlife. They also discovered 2 new graves which had been completely hidden A productive and satisfying morning's work

Last night, a big group of GoodGymmers (14 to be exact) along with 2 members of the local council gathered around a large laurel bush on the corner of St Luke's Road and Cordwallis Road. 2 groups had made sure they opted for active travel to arrive at the task - Sophie, Jess and Kelley ran 2km and there was a group of approximately 5-6 walkers who walked around 1.5km.

The task was to chop the bush down to make way for a nature garden for St Luke's School, just across the road. It was probably the biggest bush that GoodGym have trimmed thus far...!

Our task leader brought along lots of tools to help us - loppers, sacateurs and litter pickers - as there was a lot of litter buried deep within the bush! And nobody likes a dirty bush! So we did a sterling job of cleaning it up, chopping it back and our task leader was very handy with the saw to tackle the bigger branches. We worked on the bush for an hour and made a huge amount of progress which our task leader was very grateful for.

It was one heck of a workout and we were all sweating by the end, which meant we definitely all deserved some treats.

Thankfully, the amazing Anne-Laure made sure to plan her 50th good deed with this enormous group of hungry GoodGymmers and Rachel made the most epic cake and even provided homemade brownies for the free-from participants! Amy presented Anne-Laure with the customary handmade GoodGym medal too. Congratulations Anne-Laure on reaching this milestone and thank you Rachel for the yummy cakes and brownies!

I think we can all agree that the task was hard work, a laurel fun and as always, great company. There is a lot of laurel now piled up needing to be taken away so if any GoodGymmers are able to assist please message either Sophie or Amy via the whatsapp who can put you in touch with the task owner and you can self-log a good deed.

Great work GG team!

Tessa, Rachel, Sheila, Kanika and I met up at Pinkneys Green, which is green and lovely to the untrained eye, but sadly awash with litter when you start looking more carefully, especially along the roads.

It was great to meet Leysa and Darren. Leysa has been doing a brilliant job organising litter picks with other residents locally, and was joining up with GoodGym for the first time.

We found heaps of rubbish - the usual cans, bottles and snack packaging, most likely lobbed from car windows, and lots of dog poo bags too.

Thanks to Leysa for informing the council of our plans. Tivoli came and took away our rubbish at the end of the session.

Sorry I didn't manage to get a photo of the group!

Meanwhile Viv, Angela and Georgeta did litter picks in their own neighbourhoods. Viv and Angela were joined by honorary canine member Flora and Georgeta worked hard to pick up lots of pieces that had been shredded by a mower, including a car floor mat.

Maidenhead Library's annual Big Read event had a theme of Wings this year and needed some help with putting on the event. Tessa is on the organising committee and was making sure that everything was running smoothly. Angela manned the Children's Corner, where local authors were talking about their books to the children. Jess was helping children to make gliders until they ran out of materials, so came to join Sheila on the Craft table where children could decorate fairies and make bees to go on flowers. We were winging it for most of the time, but the place was buzzing, and the session was finished before we knew it!

What a night! A fantastic 20 Goodgymmers turned out to support Alexander Devine and their Easter Fundraising campaign and to celebrate 5 years of Goodgym Windsor & Maidenhead!

The evening was split into two parts…….our task and our party!

Part 1: Chick-stuffing! Hannah and Nicole from Alexander Devine provided us with stacks of chocolate eggs and knitted chicks! We had to stuff the chicks with the eggs and then add little tags so people knew who the chicks were supporting. There was a wide variety of chicks with added hats, bows and even bells! Each group found their own way of getting through the stacks of chicks and there was a whole variety of ideas to ensure the labels stayed round the chicks necks securely.

We managed to stuff and label ~550 chicks, smashing last years numbers! These chicks will be distributed to local schools, shops and businesses where they will be sold and the money will go to the Alexander Devine Children’s Hospice Service. This is a crucial resource for families with children who have life-limiting or life-threatening conditions. They provide support during the hardest times and ensure parents and siblings can make precious memories.

Part 2: Party time! Once we had got our fill of chick-stuffing it was time to celebrate 5 years of Goodgym in Windsor & Maidenhead! Everyone was given a coloured medal indicating their team and they gathered together the items beginning with G they had brought with them, and had to come up with a team name and a story about their mascot. We had Green-hatted, disco loving Gizmo, a couple of galivanting Gary’s, Goodie who enjoyed Grapefruits and golf ball collecting and Georgetta the gardening goddess!

It was then on to the games! Each one tenuously themed around our Goodgym tasks! First up was our love of the community allotment represented by potatoes in tights thrust at small posts, a game of skill and accuracy! Next we celebrated the Goodgymmers themselves, with ‘Pin’ the medal on the Goodgymmer, this involved blindfolds and mini mascots and a lot of loud encouragement! Of course we could not leave out our most dependable task; litter picking! As if by magic a heap of litter swept into the room and needed clearing, involving mini high-vis and litter pickers! Our final game was a well contested round of musical chairs….and we know about sturdy chairs as we have mended many at the community centre.

A party is not complete without cake, and we are lucky to have some great bakers in our group! Whilst we tucked in Amy encouraged us to think about our goals for the next Goodgym year….maybe a milestone to reach, a distance to run or trying our hand at social visits. An opportunity for us to step outside our comfort zone knowing our fellow Goodgymmers are backing us all the way!
We also took the opportunity to celebrate our combined and some individual achievements from the last 5 years and Amy gave us some incredible stats for the last 5 years: - 7267 Good Deeds completed by 438 Goodgymmers! - 1674 group sessions and 184 social visits! - Travelled 56,744kms! - Cheered each other 34,795 times!

We should all be really proud of ourselves, whether we were there on task 1 or tonight was the first, the difference we have made, and will continue to make in our community is incredible. 😊

Well Done Team! Here’s to the next 5 years!

8 Goodgymmers met at the community centre to cut out flight related items! We were just winging it really!

We had a lovely chatty time, cutting and stenciling everything from planes to dragons and fairies to spots for ladybirds!

It was all in aid of Maidenhead's Big Read and was for the children's activities.