Ran by Jerri Da Silva, a World Champion Capoeira instructor with 25 years' experience, the York Capoeira Muzena project is a free non-contact martial arts project design primarily for children, to help them improve their fitness, teamwork and focus.
Capoeira is a martial art that combines elements of fight, acrobatics, music, dance and rituals in a very elegant and magnetic way. Performed by two people, it is often called “Capoeira game” that is played, not a fight. Capoeira is always played with a smile on face symbolizing that the capoeiristas are not afraid from the danger that is coming. A video of an adult session ran by Jerri can be seen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YGl-r_Cxg7A
The York project offers two community sessions (4 - 8 years old and 9 -16 years old) once per week. The sessions are free of charge and help a significant amount of under-privileged children/families who would otherwise be unable to afford to attend similar sessions elsewhere in the City.
Working as a restaurant chef by day, Jerri is currently paying all costs to keep this project running out of his own pocket, in order to ensure it stays free for the community. Following the deaths of his brothers in Brazil, who were also heavily involved in Capoeira, Jerri is now devoted in promoting the art of Capoeira in Great Britain and across the world.
Whilst Jerri is currently paying for this himself out of the goodness of his heart, it is not sustainable and we would love to help him hit this target to secure the future of the project and help it continue to grow.