It was a beautiful warm July evening, the sort that reminds you why volunteering outdoors is such a joy. With sunshine, plenty of laughter and a garden that had well and truly embraced the "rewilding" trend, we returned to St Botolph's Church Garden to help bring some order back to the wilderness.

A huge welcome back to Mel and Paul, who have both been living life at full speed recently between work, a cycling tour and campervan adventures. It was brilliant to have you both back where you belong—in the middle of a bramble patch!

Joining our wonderful hosts Val and Rik were John, Belinda, El, Ricky and Julia (me), all ready to ' leaf no branch unturned' 

Massive thanks to John and Belinda, who arrived  complete with a battery-powered hedge cutter, a handy little step, secateurs and other bits and pieces too. 

There wasn't much standing around—we all got stuck in straight away, taking on thick ivy, towering brambles and enough unruly foliage to keep a small army busy. Nature had definitely taken root!

Paul claimed the west side of the garden, battling both the overgrowth and a rather enthusiastic wind that clearly hadn't read the forecast. Meanwhile, I took on the glamorous role of chief wheelbarrow chauffeur with multiple trips to the compost heap as greenery flew in from every direction.

Once Paul's section was under control, he joined John and Ricky, who were busy uncovering the hidden area behind the old air raid shelter. With every thorny branch removed, more of the forgotten space emerged from its leafy disguise.

Nearby, Belinda, Mel and El were making fantastic progress clearing thick ivy and stubborn brambles from the church wall. Refusing to stop there, they ventured beyond the wall into the tranquil church garden itself, where they continued their assault on the undergrowth. Safe to say the weeds were firmly on the back foot by then.

Slowly but surely, the mountain of cuttings grew, the compost heap became ever fuller, and the garden started looking less Jurassic Park and more Secret Garden.

By the end of the evening there was a huge sense of satisfaction. Hidden paths started to reappear, walls could be seen again, and another treasured community space had enjoyed a proper GoodGym makeover.

A gorgeous summer evening, fantastic teamwork, plenty of banter, and proof once again that when GoodGym gets to the root of a problem, there's no stopping us.

There are some evenings that remind you exactly what GoodGym is all about, and tonight was one of them.

Our mission took us to Margaret's garden at Beehive Care Home, where there was plenty of green therapy waiting for us.

The biggest cheer of the evening, though, was reserved for Paula. It was absolutely wonderful to welcome her back after some time away. We've all missed you enormously, Paula, and it was so lovely to see you back where you belong on a Monday night :

Naturally, alongside her was the perfect partner in gardening crime, Barbara, and together with Margaret they made a fantastic team. Armed with gloves, trowels and plenty of determination, they got stuck into weeding, dug out some particularly stubborn grasses, and gave an overgrown clematis a well-deserved prune. By the end of the session, Margaret's garden was looking tidier, brighter and ready to flourish once again.

As always, it wasn't just the garden that benefited—it was another evening of friendship, laughter and making a real difference in our community.

Welcome home, Paula. We can't wait to see you back in your red GoodGym shirt again next week! 🌱💚

** GoodGym Sets Sail! 🏴‍☠️🎨**

What a glorious way to spend a summer's evening! With the sun shining and barely a cloud in the sky, it was an absolute delight to be outdoors helping transform a school's pirate ship into a striking masterpiece of black, red and white.

This evening's crew consisted of Barbara, Belinda, Gill, El, Paul, John and myself, and we soon had brushes in hand and paint flying in every direction.

It was especially lovely to welcome Paul back after his camper van adventures in Priscilla. We enjoyed hearing snippets of his travels before putting him straight to work!

As always, my wonderfully loyal regular team brought plenty of enthusiasm, hard work and, naturally, the usual GoodGym banter, which kept everyone smiling throughout the task.

The painting progressed at an impressive pace, although there was one clear winner in tonight's unofficial competition... the award for wearing the most paint goes to Belinda!

By the end of the session, the pirate ship had been given a fantastic fresh new look and was ready for many more imaginative adventures from the children.

A huge thank you to Barbara, Belinda, Gill, El, Paul and John for another enjoyable evening of teamwork, laughter and community spirit. Tasks like these remind us just how rewarding it is to spend a sunny evening doing something that makes such a visible difference.

Until the next adventure... anchors away! ⚓🏴‍☠️

It wasn't just good Jim

It was GoodGym plus. Barbara had brought along reinforcements in the shape of her sister Jackie - and we really needed that extra pair of hands which have become a regular at this task! Along with Ricky, Belinda and John that gave us an (in?)Famous Five to head into the task.

It's a task that has become familiar to us over the past few years. To get all evidence of the Summer Fayre removed from sight, so the building can return to it's primary purpose as a 60 bed veterans care home.

Nothing's too tacky for us

Fridges were emptied, bunting was taken down and neatly folded. Temporary posters were removed and disposed of with the blue tack delicately removed and kept ready to stick again.

A gathering of chairs

Inside and out, chairs were moved and stacked. Then they were wheeled round to the storage shed, which could well have earned the title Hothouse today. To ensure they all fitted, the chairs needed stacking as high as possible. With one of us on constant lookout for Ms Elf and her sidekick Safe T, we tilted piles and cajoled chairs in the best we could. The best work was definitely achieved under the seated supervision of John and Barbara. Could be a model for future GoodGym sessions.

It's a wrap

A quick walk around the centre looking for wayward chairs, and checking we had covered our list, we headed back into the sunshine.

Helping Margaret out is always a pleasure and she was in good spirits tonight sharing with Barbara that she didn't learn to ski until she was 60 !

This evening was a mixture of weeding , pruning and tidying.

What a fantastic character Margaret is 😍

Ahhh… at last, salvation descends from the sky — not as rain (we’ve given up hoping for that), but in the form of our favourite two‑legged water‑wielders. We felt you approaching long before you arrived. The ground trembled gently, the sun glinted off the watering can, and every stem in the bed perked up like, “Everyone behave, the GoodGym crew is here.”

We’ve been parched, you know. The hot weather has been relentless. Some of us were starting to whisper dramatic things like, “Tell my story… remember me fondly…” but thankfully your arrival stopped all that nonsense.

The first splash hit the soil and—oh!—the relief. Pure bliss. A cool drink trickling down to our roots, the kind that makes leaves unfurl and petals sit up straighter. You moved along the bed with purpose, giving each of us a moment of attention. Even the shy ones at the back got a generous soak. We noticed.

Some of us are drama queens (looking at you, marigolds), and immediately started showing off, standing taller as if to say, “Look how hydrated I am now.” Others took their refreshment quietly, letting the water seep in with a grateful sigh.

We chatted among ourselves after you left:

“Did you see how carefully they watered around my base?”

“I got two pours, I’m basically royalty.”

“I think I might grow an extra leaf out of sheer gratitude.”

Thanks to you, we’re ready to face another warm day, another blazing afternoon, another curious dog sniffing around. You’ve kept us in good shape, and we’ll do our best to look vibrant, cheerful, and worthy of your efforts.

So from all of us — the blossoms, the stems, the leaves, the roots, and even the tiny seedlings who are still figuring out which way is up — thank you for wielding the watering can like the hero you are.

Come back anytime. We’ll be here, growing, glowing, and waiting for our next refreshing visit. 🌱💧