Meet Dorinda Luzardo | Founder & President, Angels Reach Foundation

We had the good fortune of connecting with Dorinda Luzardo and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Dorinda, is there something that you feel is most responsible for your success?
I feel that the success that Angels Reach has experienced is largely due to the fact that our entire team is truly and genuinely committed to our mission and wholeheartedly believe that we can transform our global communities through the infusion of our concept of developing compassionate leadership from among youth and families who may have been marginalized due to their individual personal challenges. When our students, community professionals, and families reach out to us, they consistently report feeling that we sincerely act upon our values and that we please the benefit of each child, each individual at the forefront, even to the point of making decisions that may not necessarily be the best for the organizations finances, but at the particular moment, it is definitely the best for those we serve.

What should our readers know about your business?
When people ask me what makes a Angels Reach different I tell them that it was different from the very beginning. Angels Reach did not come about as a result of a business plan and investors, but rather it was born because I would do anything to make sure that my children experienced a life to the fullest of their capabilities. And it is because of that beginning that we are still a very different kind of organization today.

Every child and every family who reach out to Angels Reach, those who come to us with a diagnosis, and those who come to us without any diagnosis at all, but yet are experiencing challenges or limitation of any kind in their lives, those who find it difficult to fit in either because of a developmental delay of any kind, or because they challenge the status quo somehow, they find a home at Angels Reach where they are accepted, nurtured, supported, and where the most amazing team of dedicated professionals are more than willing to apply their creativity, their reasoning, and their resources to create innovative, truly effective, life-changing programming for each child, young adult, or family member.

Angels Reach not only provides a one of a kind clinical education program for children from kindergarten through high school and young adults that focuses on developing compassionate leadership and growing those individuals who will be change agents in our community. Our integrated therapies and clinical interventions bring research based methodologies into new paradigms, and we have expanded even internationally.

Through our landmark building in Miami Lakes, known as the White House of the Americas, Angels Reach’s mission of transforming individuals and supporting education, compassionate leadership, empowerment for those who may have faced challenges, and providing international culture and arts a way to find a voice and a home through our resources. The White House of the Americas offers universities around the country and internationally a prestigious location for educational conferences, as well as a proud display of international artists, the ability to host international dignitaries, and facilitate a link, especially with Latan American talent, with local professionals and community servers.

Given that Angels Reach is a nonprofit organization and that it remains true and loyal to diligently serving the population of youth that gave it its original focus, none of this expensive growth is easy. The organization faces challenges as it has repeatedly opted to allocate it’s available funding to support those who are in greatest need and must depend it’s self then on the support of like-minded individuals and businesses to ensure that we can continue to reach those who most need us. Along the way, one thing has become very clear: everything happens for a purpose, and there is a universal wisdom and love that seems to always bring the right people and the right support just when it is needed the most by the organization itself. Walking with Angels Reach cannot but develop a sense of trust and certainty that goodness prevails.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
South Florida has no lack for beautiful places and exciting adventures to be had! I would begin by showing my friend some of our beautiful beaches and some of the more iconic places in Miami like Viscaya Museum and Gardens, Coconut grove, some of our beautiful museums, and of course lunch in Little Havana is a must.

I would then start to take a little trip north and visit a quaint little town like Mount Dora, before heading to Orlando for a couple of days in Disney World and Universal Studios. On the way back, I would pass by the Ringling Museum in Sarasota.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I’ve been so exceptionally blessed to have angels walking into my life, I believe, from the very beginning. My greatest sources of inspiration, support, and guidance have come from my own family. My parents created in me a sense of empowerment and fierce determination to fight, to overcome, and to achieve always. One of my daughters brought to my life the reason to fight against all odds and establish a foundation that would eventually facilitate her ability to not only overcome the challenges of autism, but to excel even amongst her peers and become an independent, self-directed and contributing member of our community. Angels Reach could never have grown to where it has without the unconditional support from Manny Ribadeo who has offered repeatedly not only his knowledge and resources in business, but who has personally invested with unequal generosity to ensure that in moments of the greatest hardships so that Angels Reach and its mission would prevail. And then there are angels who walk into my life and feel as if they have been a part of the Angels Reach history from the very beginning. Among the most extraordinary of those who give selflessly and continuously are Blas Montezano III, Alexis Porro Fortun, Martin Slater, Allison Jump, Amanda Sosa, Danay Guijarro, and Iovanna Romero. Without the selflessness that these amazing individuals offer me personally, always at the drop of a hat, I would not be able to sustain the dream that seems to be ever-expanding for Angels Reach.

Website: Www.angelsreach.org

Instagram: @angelsreachacademy

Linkedin: @doryluzardo

Facebook: @angelsreach

Image Credits
Images credited to Angels Reach Foundation