I have cerebral palsy. The intensive treatments that give me independence cost €9,075 a month and I need 3 a year. The caps in your kitchen pay for part of them.
Saturday, 26 Sep
You don't need to donate money to make a difference. The easiest thing is to keep the caps you already throw away.
My dad collects and sorts. My mum takes me to my treatments. You keep the caps. We're a team!
Donation account in the name of Martim Silva Cruz:
PT50 0045 7214 4036 8604 7382 1
Rather send the money straight to the clinic? Call Kinésio (914 032 345*): you'll get an invoice with your tax number.*Call to a national mobile network
Got a van? Getting BigBags to Beja is our biggest challenge. You can also organise a tournament, a concert or a cake sale, or become a collection point.
Our partner companies weigh what we collect and pay Clínica Kinésio directly. No money passes through our hands.
What each material is worth
| Material | Per tonne | 1 BigBag ≈ |
|---|---|---|
Plastic caps  Beja | €411.60 | €123 |
Metal caps Beja | €465.60 | €140 |
100% cork stoppers  Vendas Novas | €500.00 | — |
BigBag counted at 300 kg, the realistic minimum (each holds 300 to 350 kg).
Why do we keep asking you to sort? A BigBag must contain a single material and weigh at least 250 kg. If anything is mixed in, it can be rejected and all that work is lost.
Latest result: BFF Solidário 2026.
Updated by hand by my parents whenever there is a new delivery. See the report →Sort like my dad: write your name, put each item in the right bag and earn your Friend of Martim diploma. If you get it wrong, I correct it in red.
Where does this go?
Click the category you think is right:
Play, earn your diploma and share it on social media!
Case no. 167 · Boliqueime
This certifies that
Tip: the diploma changes colour with the cover. and save it in your favourite colour.
My dad visits these points to pick up the full containers. Choose the one nearest to you.
| Collection point | Type | Town | Map |
|---|
By town: Boliqueime · Loulé · Quarteira · Albufeira · Paderne · Olhos de Água
No collection point near you? Your school, club or café could be next. We help with everything.
Run a collection point →
new!
Every bottle or can with the VOLTA symbol is worth 10 cents. If you do not want them and you are happy to, I will take them and all of it goes to my treatments.
before you hand them in, check:
Where to hand them in: preferably straight to my parents, or at CD Boliqueime. More points will take bottles soon.
That helps too: return the bottle without its cap, keep your 10 cents and the cap stays for me. More than 50 people have told us they did this with no problems. To be fair, the official rules ask for the bottle with its cap. Always check on the screen that your deposit was counted.
I was very healthy and happy during the 40 weeks and 6 days I grew in my mum's tummy. Everything changed at birth. I was born in cardiorespiratory arrest and had to be resuscitated.
A few days later, the doctors explained to my parents that I had suffered hypoxic-ischaemic injury, which damaged my brain. I was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy – Dystonic Tetraparesis, a condition that challenges every movement I make.
Since I was 15 days old I've been followed by physiotherapists at the hospital in Faro. At 4 months I started at APPC Faro, an association for people like me, where I keep making progress every day.
In recent years, thanks to my parents' tireless efforts, I've been having intensive treatments at Clínica Kinésio, in Espinho: physiotherapy (the Therasuit method), the Padovan method, speech therapy, occupational therapy and transcranial stimulation. Every small victory is a huge joy.
My life has lots of challenges, but also lots of smiles and achievements. Every gesture of yours is a giant step on my road to independence.
I have 3 intensive treatments a year at Clínica Kinésio, in Espinho. Each one lasts a month, away from home with my mum, and costs €9,075.
Martim
They turn the caps, the corks and the donations into my treatments, and they're with me every day.
Beja
Weighs the plastic and metal caps we collect and pays for my treatments directly to the clinic: €411.60 per tonne of plastic and €465.60 per tonne of metal caps. My case number is 167.
resialentejo.ptVendas Novas
Recycles the 100% cork stoppers we collect and turns them into money for my treatments: €500 per tonne.
amorim.comEspinho
This is where I have my month-long intensive treatments: physiotherapy (the Therasuit method), the Padovan method, speech therapy, occupational therapy and TDCS. It also accepts direct donations, with an invoice.
kinesio.ptLagos
My new clinic, closer to home. This is where the cap money is being used now. I will tell you more soon.
Faro
The Portuguese Cerebral Palsy Association in Faro has been with me since I was 4 months old and helps me make progress every day.
appc-faro.org.pt
Boliqueime Parish Council
Loulé Town Council
Agrupamento de Escolas Engº Duarte Pacheco
Boliqueime Sports ClubAnd also the Vale Silves Parents and Children Association, the Boliqueime Workers' Association, the EB1/JI Benfarras Parents' Association, the scouts and every collection point.
Walks, tournaments, dances and cakes. Every event has tables for sorting caps and lots of people joining hands.
We help spread the word and bring the containers.
What I have learnt and achieved, told by my parents after each treatment.
Photos and videos of the people who have helped me. Every face here is a step for me.
Got photos from an event? Send them to Martim's dad and they'll go in the album.
Tap a question to see the answer.
Resialentejo, in Beja, weighs the plastic and metal caps we collect and pays for my treatments directly to the clinic: €411.60 per tonne of plastic and €465.60 per tonne of metal caps. My case number is 167.
There are 21 collection points in Boliqueime, Loulé, Quarteira, Albufeira, Paderne and Olhos de Água. See the full list under Where to drop off.
If plastic and metal caps are mixed, the BigBag may be rejected and all the collecting effort is lost.
Yes. 100% cork ones count, and so do the ones with a plastic top, which my dad keeps in a separate bag. Stoppers with a wooden or metal top can't be accepted. Amorim, in Vendas Novas, pays €500 per tonne.
You can give them to me: bottles and cans with the VOLTA symbol, whole, not crushed and preferably with the label. Each one is worth 10 cents for my treatments. Hand them straight to my parents or at CD Boliqueime. If you would rather return them yourself, hand in the bottle without its cap and keep the cap for me.
Yes, and it's what we struggle with most. If you can transport large loads, talk to us.
Bank transfer to Martim Silva Cruz's donation account: PT50 0045 7214 4036 8604 7382 1. Any amount helps.
Yes. Call +351 914 032 345* and they'll explain everything. After donating you'll get an invoice with your tax number.*Call to a national mobile network
Donations to the account are managed by my parents, only for Martim's treatments and needs, with detailed records. Kinésio always issues an invoice. The Dê uma Tampa money is paid by Resialentejo directly to the clinic.
It's a neurological injury that affects control of posture and movement. Tetraparesis is the loss of motor function in the arms and legs. Dystonia causes involuntary movements and changes in muscle tone.
Collection points, transport, events or just a question: we answer everyone.
Thank you to every person in this photo. Martim
