The 2025 Brasilito Impact Friendsgiving was held on November 8, 2025, at Patagonia del Mar and raised $75,513. The money was split equally between the Asociación de Desarrollo Integral de Playa Brasilito, known as ADI Brasilito, and Asociación CEPIA.
The second edition, now called Impacto Brasilito, is set for Friday, December 4, 2026, at the same restaurant. That's a little under two months from now, so it's worth looking at what the first one bought before the next one starts.
The clearest record of last year's money is a weekly schedule of classes and rehearsals. Two local organizations run it, and most of it is centered on one room in town.
The Night That Set the Budget
The Upe recap of the 2025 Friendsgiving lists what the money was meant for: renovating the children's park, improving the community hall, expanding tutoring and art programs, and revitalizing the Brasilito Community Center. The Do It Foundation organized the event, and dozens of sponsors, auction donors, artists and volunteers supported it.
It helps to compare that number with CEPIA's own fundraising. CEPIA's 2026 Blanco y Negro fundraiser raised ₡25,175,000. Of that, ₡21,175,000 went to after-school classes serving 850 beneficiaries across the organization's whole service area, which covers more than Brasilito. Brasilito Impact works on a much narrower footprint. Every dollar raised at Patagonia del Mar is earmarked for one village and split between the two groups that run most of its organized activity.
One Room Carries Most of the Calendar
Look for Brasilito's community life on a map and it points to one place, the Salón Comunal. A September 6, 2025, post on Upe reported that the community center restoration was complete, two months before the Friendsgiving. CEPIA and ADI did the work together, with support from the Marina Flamingo Foundation, and the renovated space was intended to keep hosting educational, cultural and social activities.
The room is still in regular use. On October 10, 2026, a notice on Upe's Brasilito page announced training on the principles and values of cooperatives for associates in Brasilito, held in the Salón Comunal.
A week earlier, on October 3, a thank-you post marked the end of a campaign to eliminate mosquito breeding sites around Brasilito. The post credited several local entities working together to improve health in the community.
What a Brasilito Week Looks Like Now
CEPIA's quarterly newsletters give the clearest picture of where the program money has gone. The organization restarted its Brasilito extracurricular program in 2026. About 50 children and teens take part each week in circus, breakdance, art, crafts and music.
Weekly basketball was added this year, run by a volunteer and played with donated balls. English classes for about 25 children started in April 2026. A children's crafts club began back in October 2025 for kids who weren't in school during that time slot.
ADI runs its own regular offering alongside CEPIA's, the Banda Comunal Espíritu Costeño. ADI's invitation is open to all ages and experience levels. Registration is free, the association pays the instructor, instruments are provided, and rehearsals are on weekday afternoons and evenings.
| Activity | Run by | Rhythm | Who it's for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Circus, breakdance, art, crafts, music | CEPIA | Weekly, about 50 participants in early 2026 | Children and teens |
| Basketball | CEPIA, volunteer-led | Weekly, on Wednesdays | Children |
| English classes | CEPIA | Weekly since April 2026 | About 25 children |
| Crafts club | CEPIA | Started October 2025 | Children out of school during that slot |
| Banda Comunal Espíritu Costeño | ADI Brasilito | Weekday afternoon and evening rehearsals | All ages, no experience needed |
Some of this work also ends up on stage. CEPIA's April to June newsletter reports that twelve children from its classes gave breakdance performances on June 6 and 7, 2026.
The Building Side of the Ledger
The physical projects have their own, separate paper trail. CEPIA's 2025 annual report says the Brasilito Impact investment was directed to renovating the Playa Brasilito Training Center. It describes ADI Brasilito as developing remodels of two public spaces, the playground and the communal hall, while also professionalizing its operations. CEPIA, for its part, used its funding to expand its programs in the area, paying for academic tutoring and for arts, dance and circus groups. So the weekly schedule above is where CEPIA's share of the money can actually be seen.
The playground has a later public milestone. On May 9, 2026, the Potrero Post shared a listing on Upe's Brasilito page inviting families to celebrate the reopening of "our remodeled playground," with games, face painting, a clown show and prizes. The communal hall doesn't yet have a comparable published update.
One question is still open. The published sources don't say whether the community center finished in September 2025 with Marina Flamingo Foundation support is the same facility as the training center named in CEPIA's report. ADI Brasilito is the best source for the current status of each space.
The Hands-On Part Goes Back a Year Too
Brasilito Impact has been more than a dinner. According to an Upe post from October 2025, ADI Brasilito and the Do It Foundation held a beach cleanup in Brasilito. The foundation donated a tractor, and ADI volunteers collected and hauled away bags of trash.
The organization behind the November dinner was also on the beach with equipment a month earlier, working alongside ADI's own volunteers.
Ways In Before December 4
For anyone living in Flamingo, Conchal, Potrero or Brasilito itself, there are several ways to take part:
- Volunteer with CEPIA. The organization accepts help with existing classes and is open to proposals based on a volunteer's skills, such as English, yoga, arts and crafts, computer classes, environmental education or sports. According to CEPIA's application page, volunteers must be 18 or older, speak intermediate Spanish, apply at least a month ahead, and commit at least 16 hours a week for 12 weeks. A shorter two-week minimum applies during set periods in January and July. CEPIA doesn't provide pay, travel, food or housing.
- Join the band. The Banda Comunal Espíritu Costeño asks for no experience and charges no registration fee. Sign-up runs through ADI Brasilito.
- Turn up for the next cleanup. The October 2025 cleanup brought ADI volunteers and Do It equipment together on the same stretch of beach.
- Hold the date for Impacto Brasilito. The save-the-date announcement sets the second edition for Friday, December 4, 2026, at Patagonia del Mar. Proceeds go to three organizations working in Playa Brasilito. As of today, the announcement doesn't name the three beneficiaries or give ticket details. Brasilito Impact's original organizer page is no longer online, so the restaurant's Instagram is the most direct place to look for updates.
Last year's split is a useful benchmark for this year's event. CEPIA's half shows up in programs that now run every week. ADI's half went toward public spaces, and the remodeled playground had its reopening celebration in May 2026. With a third beneficiary added this year, the money will be divided among more groups than it was in 2025.
At Flamingo Beach Realty, we're based just up the road in Playa Flamingo and follow Brasilito's community calendar closely. If you'd like an introduction to the organizations behind Impacto Brasilito, or help finding where your skills could fit in the village before December 4, please contact us. We'll gladly point you in the right direction.
