CCI celebrates Christmas with music, dancing, games and prizes

An atmosphere of joy, harmony and camaraderie characterised the CCI (Senior Citizens’ Centre) Christmas party on Friday, 12 December, at the Brazilian-British Centre. In addition to the 91 elderly people enrolled in our programmes, the event was attended by CCI teachers, our Welfare team and the president of the FBB, Paul McMahon. 

The celebration began around 11 am, with a table laden with cakes, tarts, sandwiches, panettone and other traditional Christmas treats. On the mezzanine, which had been turned into a dance floor, the guests gradually loosened up to the sound of including lively songs such as ‘Sandra Rosa Madalena’ by Sidney Magal and Celly Campello’s classic ‘Estúpido Cupido’, amongst others. The pupils then performed beautiful choreographed routines they had practised in their rhythm, dance and circle dance lessons. 

General and prizes

As well as dancing, games and activities also livened up the party. In the quiz, each pair drawn at random stood in front of a red button and whoever If they got the first one right, they had the chance to answer questions such as ‘What is China’s current population?’; ‘What colour results from mixing red and yellow?’; amongst others. Those who got it right took home some beautiful Christmas decorations.

Next, the participants played ‘hot potato’ and, to round off the party, there was the traditional game of bingo! The winners received Christmas gifts, many of which were packed in bags embroidered by the CCI students themselves during the embroidery workshops. “I loved getting a full house on the bingo card and winning a present in this lovely bag,” said 83-year-old teacher Lucy Bassan Rodrigues Menconi. “It’s so rewarding to take part in this party and the activities at the "foundation", says Yara Parentes Vieira, 66, a retired dentist.

A year of

According to the foundation’s project supervisor, Ana Rodrigues da Silva, 2025 was a very positive year in terms of carrying out initiatives and promoting mental health amongst the beneficiaries. “The participation of older people in the CCI and, consequently, their social interaction with others brings many benefits for them and also helps to combat cases of depression. “Today, despite the rain and power cuts in various parts of São Paulo, many students came to the party and got fully involved in the activities on offer,” says Ana.

Testimonies from CCI students attending the party confirm the positive impact of the project’s work on the lives of those involved. “These days, we older people are much more active than previous generations. Workshops, outings and parties like this one are very important for us to socialise and enjoy a life of greater quality and pleasure,” said Alice de Fátima Silva, aged 73, a psychotherapist who attends the dance classes. “Two years ago, I was widowed, and in February I enrolled in the embroidery, yoga and Pilates. These activities and spending time with other older people have helped me a great deal. “I can say that coming here has helped me overcome my depression,” said 70-year-old pensioner Iraci Duarte Novelli.

The CCI coordinator, social worker Marina Matheus, shares this positive view of the year that is drawing to a close. “There was such high demand for the workshops that we even had to set up waiting lists. What’s more, we organised lots of activities alongside the lessons, such as an incredible theatre production, a June festival, ‘Big Kids’ Week’, a trip to Holambra and this Christmas party,” says Marina.

Thanks to sponsorship from Saint Paul’s School and the support of Cultura Inglesa, which provides the venue for the classes, the CCI maintained a regular programme of free workshops in 2025 covering embroidery, yoga, dance, technology and social media, circle dancing, theatre and Pilates, in both Pinheiros and Paraisópolis. And our Welfare team plans to organise further initiatives with a positive impact in 2026. “Next year, we also want to seek out more sponsors and partners to strengthen this project, which brings such great benefits to older people,” concludes Marina

We are immensely grateful to our partners, teachers, staff and participants who make the CCI such an important project. We wish you all a very Merry Christmas and hope that 2026 will be yet another year full of reasons to celebrate.