On Guy Fawkes Night, Goodgym spun their own legend......

Once upon a time, there was a school whose drop-off and pick-up zone had become a battleground of hangry children and weary parents. The hedges loomed and the bushes bulged into the path, and every morning felt like a game of dodge-the-human.

But one parent had had enough. She rallied her merry band of GoodGymmers to tame the wild greenery and restore peace to the school run. The school gave a nod, and on a mild November Wednesday with fireworks booming all around, 13 heroes answered the call to loppers.

Among them, two new champions emerged: [Lucy] and [Julie], who dove straight in. In just thirty minutes, the path was cleared, the choppings packed away, and the gate area widened to welcome all with ease.

Of course, the obligatory photo op was had, and then, like folklore figures fading into the mist, the GoodGymmers slipped back into the night, knowing the school run was once again a smooth and noble quest.

(PS thank you Lucy for the report title!)

A dozen GoodGymmers, a few chairs to be mended, and some pumpkins that didn't need juggling but were juggled anyway. That's pretty much how this Wednesday's session went.

In between, we had enough time to catch up. Some tried their hand at the coffee machine, some others were brave enough to try the output.

Fixing the chairs is a fiddly task but again the GG spirit won out.

The best part, we saved the community center £1700 in just an hour by mending those chairs. Task owner Jack can sleep easier tonight, though I hope it's not on those chairs!

7 Goodgymmers were very chip-er at todays task of spreading wood chip in the forest area at St Marys pre school

Tony was a magnificent sight standing atop of a pile of wood chip with his fish and chips in hand- it provided much nourishment for the task at hand

An hour in and you wooden believe the difference we made in the area. The weeds and dirt were covered over with a fresh batch of wood chip, making for a mu(l)ch more usable space for the school

The end of the task loomed and we said goodbye to our task owner Michelle and made our way homes

Hard work on the arms tonight brushing on solvent paint remover to break down a graffiti piece in place for years.

Working in the layers we each took on a letter and kept going for the hour. Towards the end the jet wash attacked our efforts and we shall have to wait for the morning to see the result.

Although many more coats will be needed, a very rewarding task where lots of residents walking and running oast cheered and said tgank you to us.

GoodGymmer Tony Ward became Captain Jack Sparrow for the day as he took the helm for boat rides at Friends of Maidenhead Waterways' Fun Day on Saturday. It was all hands on deck as Friends of Maidenhead Waterways volunteers press ganged more than 100 landlubbers into life jackets for boat rides throughout the day. No pieces of eight were needed as Tony's new shipmates clambered aboard the good ship Yorkie. The public boat rides along York Stream were all free. Luckily thanks to Pirate Tony's boat skipper skills there were no men or women overboard and no-one ended up in Davy Jones' locker. Meanwhile across the choppy waves of Chapel Arches, GoodGymmer Dominic Hurst (a newly qualified canoe and kayak instructor) was busy heaving ho, taking people on free kayak and canoe taster sessions in the shark infested waters of York Stream. More than 40 people said Aye Aye and walked the plank into canoes for Dominic's watery trips, shouting "avast ye" whenever they saw Pirate Tony's boat pass.
At the end of a busy day it was time for GoodGymmers Tony and Dominic to enjoy a good Yo Ho Ho and a bottle of rum.

Tonight’s GoodGym mission in Maidenhead was a sandy one! While beach cleans aren’t exactly common around here, this one came with a twist—we weren’t cleaning the beach, we were removing it.

A couple of months ago, we helped create the pop-up beach for Norden Farm’s summer festivities. But with autumn creeping in and flip-flops firmly back in storage, it was time to bid farewell to the sandpit!

Shifting 13 tonnes of sand is no small feat—and definitely tougher than laying it out in the first place! But the GoodGym crew rose to the challenge. With teamwork, grit, and sandy socks, we helped the Norden Farm staff make a serious dent in the dunes. There’s still a bit left to tackle, but the bulk of the beach has officially been packed away.