Luana DeAngelis
Luana DeAngelis is an American social entrepreneur, creative director, and holistic health model facilitator. With a career spanning design, multimedia, and nonprofit leadership, she is best known as the founder of the You Can Thrive! Foundation, a nonprofit organization that created a multidisciplinary, volunteer-driven model for holistic community wellness and equitable care. DeAngelis is also the inventor named on U.S. Patent #9,197,995, relating to technology for creating safe human interactions within environments. Her work in advocacy and healing arts is ongoing.
Early life and education
DeAngelis was raised in a multigenerational family of natural health practitioners, exposed early to herbal medicine, nutrition, and energy healing traditions.[1] She studied visual communication and business administration at Ocean County College, graduating magna cum laude, and later attended Parsons School of Design, where she focused on web, 3D design, and multimedia branding.[2]
Career
Creative and entrepreneurial work
Before founding her nonprofit, DeAngelis built a career in creative industries as a 3D animator, multimedia director, and entrepreneur. She managed teams of designers and technologists, developing large-scale projects across media, stage, and digital platforms.[3] Her work blended art, business, and technology, positioning her as a creative problem solver and business creator.
She later applied her skillset to social entrepreneurship, developing business models and nonprofit structures focused on wellness, prevention, and equity. Her experience in design and systems thinking influenced the way she built community programs and organizational structures.
You Can Thrive! Foundation
In 2005, after her own health diagnosis, DeAngelis leveraged her background to found the You Can Thrive! Foundation in New York City.[4] The nonprofit created a volunteer-based, integrative care model, combining holistic therapies such as Reiki, nutrition, aromatherapy, and therapeutic sound with patient navigation as support.
The organization’s outcome data, presented at the Society of Integrative Oncology and expanded into an IRB-approved study with Columbia Presbyterian, showed statistically significant improvements in symptom reduction and quality of life within four visits.[5]
Since then, the foundation has scaled, benefitting cancer survivorship and offering community wellness programs, online events, and global educational initiatives.[6]
Sound/Energy Alchemy
DeAngelis also developed Sound/Energy Alchemy, a therapeutic sound meditation technique which merged sound, guided imagery, Reiki, and visualization.[7]
Advocacy and public speaking
DeAngelis is an active patient advocate and speaker on integrative medicine, prevention, sound as medicine and community health. She has appeared at major conferences, including the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium and the Society of Integrative Oncology. Media coverage of her work has appeared in outlets such as Oprah.com, New York Post, Eyewitness News ABC7, The Resident, and Breast Cancer Wellness Magazine.[8][1][4]
Patent
DeAngelis is named on U.S. Patent #9,197,995, which describes technology designed to create safe environmental interactions and improve human-system interfaces.[9]
Recognition
Her work has been recognized in mainstream and specialized media bridging business, holistic health, and charity. She leverages creativity, technology, and compassion to build initiatives that help communities thrive.[6][8]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Survivors Help Survivors at You Can Thrive!". Eyewitness News ABC7. October 2009. Retrieved 10 September 2025.
- ↑ DeAngelis, Luana (2015). "Breast Cancer Wellness: Luana DeAngelis Profile". Breast Cancer Wellness Magazine. Vol. 7 no. 3. p. 34. Retrieved 10 September 2025.
- ↑ "The Resident: Luana DeAngelis Profile". The Resident. 2017. Retrieved 10 September 2025.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Smith, Emily (20 October 2013). "Helping Breast Cancer Survivors Heal Holistically". New York Post. Retrieved 10 September 2025.
- ↑ "Abstract presented at Society of Integrative Oncology Annual Conference". Society of Integrative Oncology Proceedings. 2014.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedResident - ↑ "The Resident: Sound Healing with Luana DeAngelis". The Resident. 2017. Retrieved 10 September 2025.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 "Oprah.com Feature on Luana DeAngelis and You Can Thrive!". Oprah.com. 2010. Retrieved 10 September 2025.
- ↑ "Patent US9197995B2: Method and system for providing safe interactions". Google Patents. Retrieved 10 September 2025.
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