A damp October evening in Liverpool, four eager GoodGym runners, and a shop full of donations, waiting to be sorted...it can only mean one thing...another GoodGym task at one of our favourite venues, Scope in the city centre.

As ever, the indomitable Dawn, manager of the store, was waiting to greet us. Always with a cheery smile and a positivity that inspires all around her, Dawn is one of our most ardent supporters. She is always so grateful for everything that we do to help. Often working long after the volunteers have gone home, she is a force of nature, making a huge difference in difficult times.

Matthew and Phillip had the task of clearing donations from the shop changing room. They soon got to work transporting them down to the basement storeroom. It was a great opportunity for them to get in some step training, as well as saving Dawn a great of time and effort.

Meanwhile, Helena, who was visiting the Scope shop for the first time, and I stayed on the shop floor, checking hundreds of items of clothing. We were to check the date on each item, removing the plastic discs from any dated 16th October, or earlier. There were a good deal of them. These items would be removed, to be sent on to another Scope outlet.

Within the hour, both tasks were completed, and Dawn was delighted with the amount that we had managed to do. Before we left, there was just time to check out the now empty changing room...which now had enough space for a small performance! If only we knew an actor ;-)

Stepping out into the now dark and drizzly Liverpool street, we left Dawn to lock up.

Another satisfied customer :)

Many thanks to our newest members, Helena and Phillip, it was great to see you both again. Well done both, on completing your second good deed.

How lovely to be able to get back to one of our regular tasks at Scope's city centre charity shop.

Lockdown has resulted in a huge surge in donations recently, as households across the country have used their time to clear out their cupboards. While this is great news for the charity shops, it has also meant a massive increase in the workload for staff and volunteers. So any help we can give, is gratefully accepted.

Arriving a little early, I was looking for bargains in the shop window, when our newest member Phillip arrived, having cycled across Town for his first GoodGym session. Next to arrive was Chris followed by super sisters, Claire and Ruth. Our dream team assembled, we headed into the shop.

The lovely Dawn was on hand to set us to work, splitting us into two teams: Phil and Chris tackled the heap of donations that needed to be transferred from the shop floor, to the storage/sorting area in the basement, so lots of steps training for them! Meanwhile, Ruth, Claire and I looked through the hundreds of items on the shop floor, checking for dates before 19/9...then removing the little plastic discs from the hangers. It was so hot that we were soon 'glowing with perspiration' 🥵.

Within the hour, our jobs were completed, and Dawn was over the moon. She said we had saved her hours of work, allowing her to concentrate on other tasks.

I'm sure we will be revisiting before too long.