Alirio Torrealba
FOUNDER AND CEO OF MG DEVELOPER
“I think it’s important that people have a social purpose in their lives and their communities… as human beings, we have to find ways to help others... "
Alirio Torrealba
Venezuelan entrepreneur Alirio Torrealba is developing mid-rise luxury townhomes and other real estate in Coral Gables through the company he started in 2015, MG Developer. He recently broke ground on MG’s four-unit Villa Blanc project, part of an $80 million initiative to create buildings in walkable distance to the downtown. A supporter of the arts, he funded the recently completed 30-foot-long stone couch in Balboa Plaza that’s been dubbed “A Midsummer’s Night Dream.”
LATEST ENDEAVOR
Torrealba is raising awareness and funds for the nonprofit Fundahigado (Liver Foundation), which provides liver transplants for low-income children in Latin America using healthy liver sections from parents or other live donors. U.S.-trained surgeon Pedro Diaz started the program in his native Venezuela some 15 years ago, providing hundreds of successful transplants there to date. His group is now training medical teams in other Latin American nations to perform the procedures.
WHAT HE SAYS
In his own words in Spanish: “I know Dr. Pedro Rivas, the founder of Fundahigado from Venezuela, and long admired his passion and perseverance to provide liver transplants for children whose families can’t afford the surgeries. These children risk dying without urgent transplants. I started out donating to the nonprofit, and last year, got involved in fundraising. [Venezuelan fashion designer] Carolina Herrera also is an active supporter.
“We just had our first event in Coral Gables to promote Fundahigado and plan
another soon, possibly with a documentary to show how the group saves children’s lives… I think it’s important that people have a social purpose in their lives and their communities. Fundahigado may not resonate with everyone, but as human beings, we have to find ways to help others.”
