A much bigger group of GoodGym volunteers than last month supported the friends of Stopsley common to pick litter and enjoy a scenic walk.

Highlights included a mare and her foal, the buttercups, an orchid and wonderful panoramic views of Luton.

Join us next month for the purple orchids in bloom across the common!

We had a great turnout this week with a mixture of walkers and runners so we sent the walkers off early for a head start while the runners got warmed up to take on the evenings uphill struggle to our task.

We were all heading to the Green House community hub where progress on the new cafe space was coming along well. The main cafe space had had one coat but needed another coat and some cutting in. With red, white and green walls to paint we split into three colour coded teams and got going.

The red and green areas being smaller we managed to get finished and left them looking properly smart. The white area was too big for us on this occasion but we got it half done so there's not too much left for their weekend volunteers to work on.

Before we could leave we had to take a moment to celebrate birthday girl Mayra, so with the help of Mr Kipling we enjoyed a round of cake and sung happy birthday!

Tonight brought about the last cooking session for the Roma trust and the friends of the temple at the Shri Guru Ravidass Sangat Gudwara in town. We at Luton Goodgym have supported for 12 sessions which has helped the temple deliver a project that has brought together communities that otherwise may not cross paths and all through sharing the delights of Indian cooking. As this was the last session, our team turned out 11 volunteers to help with, prep, cooking and tidying up afterwards, as well as chatting and continuing to forge relationships with everyone on the room. 5 of us were a little late to the task as we were finishing up at another volunteerinng session in the town, but that didn't hold back the other 6 from getting stuck in. Making chapatis and putting all the ingredients together to make the tarka for the daal. Everyone took their turn tonight and the atmosphere was electric. The chai was flowing and the conversation was fantastic. Everyone had a great time this evening and we look forward to supporting the temple in the future as they always make us feel so welcome. Well done everyone and thanks for continuing to show what a fantastic bunch you all are.

6 members of the Luton Goodgym team were in attendance at the Shri Guru Ravidass Sangat Gudwara this evening. Mayra took the reigns at the start of the evening as Martin and Gill were finishing up at another task. The team welcomed Adrian to his first task and his chapati making skills were something to marvel at. It was grwat to catchbup with Corinne again although we did get told off when we were chatting whilst making chapatis. Musa was in charge of making sure the flat breads got a nice glaze of butter when they were cooked. Tonight the friends of the temple were there to extend their knowledge and skills of Punjabi cuisine and it was great for the team to be able to help host, cook and clean up at the event. There was a great atmosphere and some delicious butternut squash curry to savour, making the evening a great one. Well done team, great effort.