Andrea began training with Group Axé Capoeira in 1999 when it was first introduced to the city of Victoria, BC. From the moment she saw her first class, she knew that Capoeira would be something to explore deeply. More then ten years have past, and she still feels humbled and inspired by this extraordinary art form. As a dedicated member of the group, she has had the opportunity to share her love of the art with her students through teaching and participating internationally in workshops, festivals and Batizados. She feels grateful and fortunate to be part of an organization that was built with the strong fundamentals of Mestre Barrão’s philosophy, passed on to her by the passionate and dedicated, Professor Testa. Committed to becoming a complete Capoeirista, she strives to reveal the strength and unifying benefits of Capoeira in her classes for both children and adults. The Axé Capoeira children’s program, now in its 9th year, has inspired the development of an international charity organization called - kids helping kids. Kids helping kids is a social advocacy group that encourages fundraising, education and physical activity for children in Canada and Brazil. At least once a year, kids helping kids encourages the students to engage in a cultural exchange that also serves as a fundraiser for increasing opportunities for children to participate in cultural activities such as art, dance and music as well as providing lessons of global citizenship. Currently, Monitora Andrea assists with the classes at the successful Axé Capoeira Victoria Academy, where you can find her teaching Afro-Brazilian dance and children’s programs. She also performs with the Victoria based group, Batuque Axé, a 12 piece live Brazilian music band.