Three years, 2,432 GoodGym sessions (of which 150 were group runs) and just shy of 5,000 of good deeds completed by 592 GoodGymers, Sam's time as AA of GG Southwark had come to an end!

Sam opened up Old Spike Peckham for one last time and as he has always done welcomed in each and every runner that came through the door: Maria, Paulin, James, Steve, Nelly, Lindy, Emma, Daryl, Gemma, Rosemary, Rosalind, Nathan, Louise, Cecilia, Isaac, Anna, Katy, Benjamin, Jo, Fi, Andrada and Mansur as knew we would meet Daisy and Will.

Despite the occasion, he went through his usual speech and today's ice-breaker question, Sam asked everyone: "What their favourite Sam ice-breaker question was?"

With over 150 ice-breaker questions over the years, it was great to see that they all stuck in people's mind from all the social dates in the year to the awkward, but meaningful questions...

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The One Where We Said Goodbye

After a quick warm-up in the the alleyway, which we all managed to fit in, Sam led the group out towards East Dulwich via Goose Green and in front of East Dulwich station before climbing Champion Hill to get to Albrighton Community Centre, where Elodie was waiting for us and had told us that Daisy and Will had arrived too. The run took us just over 10 minutes covering 1.7k.

After two Saturday morning sessions in the summer, it was great to be back at Albrighton Community Gardens to tackle the next part of the challenge - clear the ivy that was left. With 5 loppers and a couple of hand tools, the team knew what to do and like clockwork, they all started pulling at the ivy to start breaking it all up. Most needed the loppers and shears to cut through the tougher ivy branches. Whilst those who wanted to stay out of the ivy bushes chose to carry the cuttings from the ground to the compost area around the corner.

Sam took photos, videos and put on his favourite songs as he witnessed and watched everything unfold - the reason GoodGym exists as a concept. As we peeled back the layers of ivy, evidence of litter started to appear, so a small team started to pick up items as Elodie provided black bin bags.

Although, we had 45 minutes to clear as much as we could, we were done in 40 minutes. Leaving Elodie will a few bits to tidy up and a quick sweep too. The last thing we had to do, of course, was get in a couple of group photos to mark the end of an era.

Saying our goodbyes to Elodie, we ran back through a short cut down Ondine Road to make it back to the alleyway in less than 10 minutes and to cover 3k in total. Sam did his final stretch before the real farewell could begin at 80-20 Wines next door. A heartfelt speech from Emma and a wonderful gift from everyone made Sam feel so special and he wanted to convey that in his own speech and video to mark the end of the evening. Of course, it's not a complete evening, if we don't need up at the Nag's Head, which we did.

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Thank You to all the GG-ers

A personal thanks from me to all those who came out on Wednesday night for my final group run as AA! The sheer number of you spoke volumes to me and the session couldn't have gone any better. It showed exactly why I joined and fell in love with the GoodGym concept and model. The fact you can bring a group of people together, mix in a short run and a volunteering activity to give back to society. By the end of the night, you feel a sense of accomplishment that you have done something for yourself and others. Elodie, the task owner, was taken aback at what we can do and I hope it can still keep on going as we adapt to a CLA model. Thank you to Anna and Emma for backmarking the runs.

On a sunny Monday morning , Lucy & Will ventured over to Borough from Brent & Victoria to support Borough Food Cooperative (BFC) with packing, stacking and cleaning in readiness for their weekly shop openings. The successful initiative was launched off the back of the Covid pandemic, providing an inclusive and cost-effective supply of groceries and essentials to the local community, whilst reducing food waste. Under the expert instruction of the BFC Shift Leader, Lucy & Will were on hand to receive deliveries from charitable food distributors, including The Felix Project, then get the shelves stacked for future customers! From crates of spinach, an abundance of bananas to Creme Egg filling(!), an array of items were brought into the care of BFC. Special shout-out to Lucy for her inaugural GoodGym task and for offering a further hand to BFC before she embarks on her world travels!

GoodGym will be back to BFC soon - be on the look out for the sign-up and get involved!

Last night's GoodGym community mission took us to back to the beautiful Doddington Rooftop Garden, where our dedicated group of volunteers rolled up their sleeves and got stuck into an array of gardening tasks. It was a perfect summer evening, and everyone was eager to make a difference in this lovely community space. We also had the pleasure of welcoming GoodGym newcomer Suresh, and Will and Daisy to their first task with Wandsworth!

With so much to do, our team of 14 split into groups to tackle different tasks. One group focused on moving 4 young trees from the vegetable patch to a different area of the estate, freeing up space and allowing the veg growing there the chance to soak up the nutrients they need, without the greedy trees taking all the good stuff! By the end of the session, the trees were carefully relocated, and the vegetable patch looked ready to thrive. Meanwhile, the rest of the group took on the tasks of clearing grass and raking the group in the veg patches, moving compostable waste and giving the plants a good watering - much needed after the recent dry spell!

The weather was warm and the tasks demanded muscle power (especially hole digging for the trees!) so once the tasks were complete, those who were sticking around for the social were keen to make tracks and enjoy some well earnt refreshments.

After a physical work out in the garden it was time to work out our grey matter, and we headed over to The Latchmere pub for our monthly social event: a lively pub quiz. The group split into two teams and though the questions were as challenging as ever, a lot of fun was had and one team earnt a very respectable joint second place.

Overall, it was another successful Monday night with GoodGym, filled with community spirit, teamwork, and fun. A big thank you to everyone who came along!