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Arts and Recreational Centre (CAR)

The Arts and Recreational Centre is a non-profit and public benefit association, awarded the silver medal of associative merit by the Guimarães County Council, the object of which is cultural, recreational and sports activities. It is led by voluntary youngsters and was founded on 15 November 1939, known then as “Grupo Musical Ritmo Louco” (“Wild Rhythm Musical Band”).

The life of this association has a history of significant cultural, sports, human and citizenship activities.

Culturally, the highlights go to the role played since 40 years ago by the Raul Brandão Rehearsal Theatre, to the Professor José Neves School of Music (also founded some 40 years ago), to the Gil Vicente Festivals – Theatre Festivals organized in partnership with the Guimarães County Council and which are an exhibit of prestigious national theatre – as well as the work carried out by the areas of collectibles, photography and multimedia.

In the sports area, the institution has throughout history allied the conquest of cups and medals in several activities (athletics, volley ball, hand ball, basket ball and chess) to a policy of placing their sports facilities at the service of the community, specifically for training and occupation of leisure times of the younger people.

In the educational and training areas there are many youths, of many different ages who, throughout the years have attended the professional training courses provided in the institution’s headquarters.

It is guided by a policy of being open to the community, of support for citizens and institutions through the setting up of partnerships and of holding the focal position in the associative pattern for the purpose of global training of citizens and particularly those of younger ages.

Throughout these 69 years, the Arts and Recreational Centre has shown itself to be an inter-generational association, with diversified activities, a strong sense of community intervention where persons of differing professional and social sectors congregate and participate, and for the setting up of areas of opportunity for encouraging young membership drive, being as such a sort of “incubator” of juvenile, cultural and sports associations. CAR witnessed the birth of the two academic orchestra groups of the Minho University Academic Association and is a preferential meeting and leisure area for the “Erasmus” students in Guimarães. It had a relevant role in the setting up of chess clubs and departments in the city of Guimarães, and disseminated and developed this activity throughout the County.

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