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.

This evening we had a whopping 7 GoodGymmers assisting at FoodCycle Luton in a number of different capacities. Gill did a cracking job at running the kitchen as her first night flying solo as Project Leader. Bravo Gill, everyone commented on how calm it was in the kitchen and the food was VERY well received by our guests with a huge amount of empty plates- always a good sign!

Also in the Kitchen was Mayra who did a brilliant job, wasting no time and just getting stuck in. Having volunteered a few times now at FoodCycle, Mayra has done both cooking and hosting so having knowledge on both sides is a real bonus. Helped by the other FoodCycle cooks, a delicious menu was created using the surplus food donations.

The starter was Welsh Rarebit with a mixed leaf salad, main course was Veggie Spaghetti Bolognaise with cheese, and for pudding our guests had delicious donuts with a beautifully arranged fruit salad. The 5-8pm hosting team was entirely made up of GoodGymmers, which was just brilliant! It was wonderful to welcome back Kamal and Tigger who have hosted before, but not for a while! They wasted no time and immediately got stuck in with setting out the chairs and laying the tables, setting up the all important tea and coffee station and just preparing everything ready for our guests arrival.

Corinne attended to volunteer for the second time, so we were relieved not to have scared her off! So friendly, she did a great job helping our guests feel immediately at ease. FoodCycle newbie Gail absolutely smashed her first hosting shift! Nobody would have known it was Gails first time, she jumped right in chatting with guests and keeping the tea and coffee station topped up, along with the other hosts. This week, Dani worked closely with Project Leader Craig to keep track of the number of guests and coordinate with the kitchen team accordingly. This seemed to help the evening run smoothly, and once we had hit our capacity of 50 sit down guests, latecomers were offered takeaways so nobody went away empty handed.

The hosting team worked hard to divide the remaining food donations in to enough takeaway bags so that each guest could take one if they wanted to. The atmosphere was very positive and our guests left having been fed and watered.

All together, a really great team effort- very well done gang! ❤