Laois's Brazilian Community raise over €2,000 for flood victims

The Laois Brazilian Support Association (LABRAS) have raised €2,200 for flood victims in Rio Grande do Sul.

The groups held bake sales at the Portlaoise Parish Centre and St. Mary's Hall, where a wide range of Brazilian foods and baked goods were available.

The events were ran on Saturday in conjunction with the Portlaoise Panthers and the Brazilian Catholic community in Portlaoise.

The aim of this fundraiser is to support victims of flooding in Rio Grande do Sul, a state in southern Brazil.

As of today, the floods have forced the evacuation of over 640,000 people in the area, including 65,000 who are sheltering in local schools. The death toll in Rio Grande do Sul has risen to 161.

"It was definitely a lovely day, we were quite busy and everything was sold old by the end of the event," said Cássia O'Neill, a LABRAS representative.

"We have sold 100 coxinhas (the snack in the poster)  in under twenty minutes, which was crazy!", she said. 

"We had the support of the group Catholics in Laois and the parish and the Brazilian priest had advertised this event in all church activities. 

Apart for buying cakes, people were able to sit down and enjoy their food while chatting and meeting new people. 

We had Jeca the Clown visiting us, and he entertained the adults and the children," said O'Neill.