DALLIN & KARREE LARSEN Q&A - On The Move - MonaVie

Fulfilling Its Mission to Change Lives and Restore Families
An integral part of MonaVie’s founding vision has been the mission
to generate abundance for people all around the world. In addition
to helping its global network of independent distributors achieve
a more meaningful life through improved health and prosperity,
MonaVie founded the nonprofit MORE Project in 2005 as a catalyst
to empower individuals living in poverty to break the cycle of fear
and hopelessness.
What started with a genuine desire to give back to the people of
Brazil six years ago has evolved today into an amazing, multi-faceted
program that is addressing the immense needs of people living in
the favelas (or slums) of Niteroi, Brazil outside of Rio Janeiro, while
beginning to expand its reach and work to other parts of the world.
Changing The Lives of Brazil’s Most Vulnerable
“When MORE began its work in Brazil, the challenges faced by
the people of Niteroi seemed so daunting,” says MORE Executive
Director Katy Holt-Larsen, “it was hard to imagine that any program
could really make a difference.”
Niteroi is an urban, densely-populated series of communities
situated on unoccupied government-owned land that is ruled by
rival drug lords and where violence and gang wars are an everyday
occurrence.
I Am MonaVie
Dr. Handre & Donna Hurwit
Plantation, Florida
PROJECT
Raised in poverty-stricken, illiterate homes, the children of
Niteroi arrive at school as the least motivated and least prepared to
learn. Discouraged, they drop out in frightening numbers. If they do
graduate, it is often with literacy rates well below what is necessary
to be able to make a real living.
The first efforts of the MORE Project were to relieve suffering
by providing critical resources such as food and safe shelter. While
this continues to be a part of the mission, MORE’s main focus is
now on education, as it seeks to create sustainable lives for the
children and families it serves.
“MORE Project focuses on education, because we know that
it is the most effective path to breaking the cycle of poverty,” says
Holt-Larsen. “As we concentrate on academic, social and spiritual
education, along with mindset change, the results are remarkable.”
In the six years since it began, MORE Project has grown from
serving 48 people to serving eight communities that impact hundreds
of children and families every day.
MORE Brazil‘s Educational Programs
Sergio Ponce, who serves as the director of the MORE Project in
Brazil, reports that today, the MORE Project has three different
education programs serving approximately 400 children and teens.
"I'm a cardiologist; Donna is a nurse practitioner. Our goal is to be in the wellness
business, not the sick business, and that's why we integrate MonaVie into our practice."