We were back at one of GoodGym Kingston's favourite spots this evening: the ever-generous charity, Growbaby. As per usual there was a mountain of sorting to do but this time it was different... Growbaby are moving location in the near future and needed us to not just sort their donations but take a critical view as to what should really be moved across and what doesn't make the cut.

After running, walking and cycling our way to the task, Rachel gave us the brief and we got stuck in. Luke took charge of car seats, Claire wrangled with the play mats, while Anna, Emily and Hannah sorted books, board games, toys and kitchenware. Jonathan put his best foot forward sizing up the shoes, Marcos and Sabir checked food and milk against use-by dates, and Hannah and Dave kept the baby toys under control.

The hour went by quickly with so much sorting, assessing and plenty of chat. Bin bags were filled, shelves were tidied and countless items were organised and ready for their next chapter. Most importantly, GrowBaby is now one step closer to a smooth move to its new location.

Job done, we headed off into the evening, powered by the satisfaction of another mission accomplished.

This evening for the first of our double sessions tonight Claire, Anna, Saber and myself met to water these two plots to encourage their growth - flowers and veg alike. This was all taken in gratefully as they still await any rain 🙏.

A familiar story as GoodGym Kingston headed to Canbury Gardens but this time for a double mission. Not one but two lots of watering to do. Split into two teams Sabir, Emily and Marie filled up the barrels from the river to water the Community Garden and ensure a water stock for the next shift.

Meanwhile over at the GoodGym flowerbed Anna, Matt and Claire planted a few plants that were getting far too big for Claire’s garden. Having popped some stakes in to keep them standing tall multiple trips to the river took place to gather lots of water so that the plants could all be fed and watered.

Having completed the planting and watering Marie and Matt fixed the wheel barrow and it was time to reward ourselves with a few fresh tomatoes 🍅 and beans 🫘 from the community garden.

We had a great deep cleaning session at Kingston Pantry last night. They do great work helping provide food for people in need and it's not always possible to do a deep clean when they are open in the day and that's where we stepped in to help!

We ran, walked and cycled to Tolworth Recreation Centre and got to work. Sabir, Tom, Claire, Jonathan, Marcos, Emily and Farzeen grabbed the cleaning products and systematically worked down the shelves moving products and then giving the shelves some good ole elbow grease. Dave and Marie did the same in the storage area.

Time really flew and soon it was time to get the hoover out to get rid of all the crumbs and then give it a once over with the mop.

Job well done, Kingston! We'll be back in three months for the next deep clean.