Daniela Luzi Tudor lived a life that from the outside would be the envy of many. Growing up in Europe and ending up in the Pacific Northwest, Daniela attended the University of Washington, eager to take on the world. A few years after working in Seattle, she moved to sunny Los Angeles and with a business partner, founded Sound Strokes. Sound Strokes uses the visual waveform, heartbeat or phrase to create custom luxury hand-made paintings or digital artwork.
Daniela seemed to have it all, an amazing business and a great life in Southern California. However, two years into her life, her business partner confronted her and told her, “You have a drinking and drug problem.” It was at that point that Daniela came out of denial.
Daniela decided to move back to Seattle and remove herself from her demons and work to getting healthy again. Her life hit a turning point after a night of drinking. She was pulled over for drunk driving and blew a .25 at the police station after being there for two hours. She was immediately arrested and jailed overnight. She truly knew at this point she needed help and decided to seek treatment.
While going through a treatment program, Daniela had an “a-ha moment.” The solution to addiction was accountability and human connection. Knowing that 80% of people in recovery relapse every year, she was not alone.
Using what she learned about herself, Daniela created pala-linq. Pala-linq is a mobile/web application and wearable tech accessory for on-the-go support for those recovering from alcoholism and/or drug addictions. Pala-linq is designed to enhance and support recovery through measuring mind, body and spiritual activity levels, keeping the wearer close to their support network and help maintain recovery goals. As Daniela has learned, relapse begins happening mentally and emotionally weeks before the actual physical relapse and pala-linq will come in at that entry point when there is a drop in behavior. As Daniela and many of those in recovery from addiction know all too well, it is hard to maintain sobriety by just denying yourself.
Pala-linq is one of the 2015 finalists at the Social Venture Partners (SVP) Fast Pitch, to be held on Tuesday, October 27, 2015 at McCaw Hall. SVP Fast Pitch is a business pitch competition for innovative nonprofit and for-profit social impact entrepreneurs, organizations that are solving today’s important social problems and making a positive impact in the Greater Puget Sound area. In its first four years, SVP Fast Pitch has connected social impact entrepreneurs with over $1.2 million in investments and grants. Thanks to generous sponsors, SVP Fast Pitch has raised the 2015 award pool to $375,000 – $125,000 in grants and $250,000 in investments.
On October 27, join SVP Fast Pitch to cheer on Daniela and fourteen other finalists as pala-linq works to secure funding to help everyone who is fighting to recover from drug and alcohol addictions.
WHEN:
Tuesday, October 27, 2015 from 5:00-9:30 p.m.
WHERE:
McCaw Hall
321 Mercer Street
Seattle, WA, 98109
TICKETS:
Please click here to purchase tickets and use this discount code: FF-2015-25
