This morning, Stephanie, Kirsty and Anne joined Vikki (the project leader) at the school to start painting the summer house which will shelter the Woking Wolves Disability Football for All.

Stephanie came prepared with her super painting attire!

We found painting these walls so much easier that those of "The Hive"; so much so that we managed nearly half of the whole clubhouse! Vikki is now planning how to furnish the room to cater for all the needs.

We will be back next week and hope the weather will be nicer as the outside walls still need a bit more attention.

The day after Halloween brought a crisp coldness to the air, and Woking Park looked amazing with the trees putting on a display of brilliant autumn colours.

Five GoodGym volunteers, Anne, James, Karen, Melanie and Steve headed to Woking Park to lend a hand at the Woking junior parkrun.

Being the morning after Halloween, it was great to see several of the juniors running in fancy dress, including pumpkins 🎃, skeletons ☠️ and scary monsters 🧟.

James kicked things off with the toot of his whistle and delivering the welcoming first-timers briefing. The rest of the crew headed out onto the course to watch the start and then get to their marshal posts.

The team kept the energy sky-high from start to finish by jumping up and down, clapping, and high-fived enthusiastically to support the runners fast and slow and stay warm.

A massive well done to all the fa-boo-lous finishers, and a huge thank you to the “spirited” team for bringing so much enthusiasm to a beautiful autumn morning.

The Woking team were back at Knaphill Lower School to continue working on the clubhouse for the Woking Wolves. Kirsty and Anne, the "cutting in queens", were assisted by one of the Wolves who carried the paint tins, before heading off for his football session. Kirsty and Anne then they got on with cutting in another coat to the walls already painted before starting on the rest of the shed. Julie and Anne's friend then filled in with bigger brushes and the cabin is starting to look more cosy.

We did a quick tour of the gardens that we had previously worked on and were pleased to see that they are being well used and that they survived the summer heat. The painting continues next Saturday however we may not have any Goodgymmers to support, but watch out for more sessions coming up.

A Morning of Mixed Emotions at Woking Junior Parkrun

What an unforgettable morning at the Woking junior parkrun! The community gathered at Woking Park for an event filled with incredible milestones, bittersweet farewells, and fantastic volunteer energy. Despite a bit of wind, the storms held off, and the sun shone brightly on everyone involved.

🏆 Celebrating a Legend: Anne 400th Good Deed

A massive congratulations goes out to Queen Anne on achieving her monumental 400th good deed! Anne has been a pillar of the community since the very beginning, all those years ago. It was incredibly special to have Wayne, Adam, Olalekan, and Alys there to celebrate this amazing milestone with her.

🇨🇦 A Bittersweet Farewell to Victoria & Rich

Today also marked a poignant moment as Victoria and Rich Davies served their final junior parkrun as event directors. Next week, they are moving to Canada with their children. Having previously been a core part of the Woking GoodGym team, their presence, leadership, and kindness will be missed deeply by the entire parkrun family. The Canadian parkrun community is incredibly lucky to have them!

🧡 GoodGym Team in Action

The GoodGym contingent stepped up across a variety of vital volunteer roles to keep the runners safe, motivated, and moving:

• Wayne: Stationed at checkpoint 2, offering high-energy cheering and support to the juniors as they navigated the course.

• Adam: High-fiving and shouting words of encouragement from checkpoint 3.

• Anne: Celebrating her milestone at checkpoint 5 by handing out high-fives and spreading joy.

• Olalekan: Serving as one of the official barcode scanners, expertly managing tokens and times.

• Alys: Acting as the tail walker, keeping a watchful eye on the pack to ensure every runner crossed the finish line safely.

In total there were 133 runners who took part with the fastest time an incredible 07:14 with 34 PB's fantastic running by everyone.

Julie and Anne started their run in the dark: it is the first session when we needed to switch our torches on and wear our reflective tops!

Last night, Julie intended to complete her training as a run leader. However, as there were only the two of us running enthusiastically to clean the Westfield Food Bank, we have asked GG Head Office if we should consider the session as a rehearsal or if Julie can now be crowned "Run Leader" 🏃‍♀️ 👑.

When we arrived at the Food Bank, having safely crossed the roads and ran cautiously on the very wet dead leaves, we met Sarah who, after a warm welcome, armed us with brooms 🧹, mops , bucket 🪣 🫧 and dusters.

While we waited for the floor to dry, Sarah told us about this church's community and how much they are close and look after each other. It was interesting to learn how different food banks have their very own approach.

Julie and Anne ran/walked back safely to the Leisure Centre just missing the rain!

A chilly autumnal Sunday morning brought another fantastic edition of Woking juniors parkrun, where the enthusiasm was high, and the local GoodGym crew turned out in style to lend a helping hand!

Four fantastic Good Gym volunteers: Adam, Karen, Olalekan and Steve, donned the iconic bright yellow hi-vis vests to help keep the two-lap 2km course safe, cheery, and running like clockwork for the energetic crowd of young runners.

In other news only two of the volunteers were in plaster!