in the glorious sunshine, four of us joined the volunteering team at Eltham junior parkrun this morning.

Johnny and Ivar gave out high fives as the 92 young runners and their parents ran the two lap course.

As timekeeper, Peter made sure everyone got a time as they crossed the finishing line. And Sarah scanned finishing tokens.

This is a lovely way to start a Sunday, and parkrun doesn't run without volunteers, so why not give it a go?

Mrs N's had asked for help weeding and tidying her patio so that her mother, recently out of hospital after a severe stroke, can go outside to enjoy the garden.

We started by moving chairs and plant pots off the patio to fully reveal the scale of the task at hand, and there was a lot to be done! So we were really pleased when Mrs N handed us those wire brooms which makes clearing weeds between paving slabs MUCH easier.

Even so, it was hard work getting the job done in the scorching heat of the hottest day of the year so far 🥵! Mrs N brought us cold drinks which really hit the mark. She explained that, being from India, she would always drink tea to cool down.

After 90 minutes of scouring and sweeping, the difference was clear to see.

Mrs N was delighted, and we were humbled when she handed us a gift bag containing some Indian tea and a box of chocolates 🫶.

By contrast to the group activities that GG Bexley mostly does, this was a ''mission' - helping an isolated older person with a practical task in their home.

Missions are listed on our website and if there's one you'd like to do, you can say what times would work for you. You have to be DBS cleared through GG and complete a short training session to become mission verified, but it's very straightforward.

We are starting to get more missions requsts coming through for GG Bexley, so here's where to find out more about getting involved.