How it all began:

           Like a large part of Brazilian children, Marlon Brito had big dreams of becoming a professional soccer player.  Since Early, he began to trail the streets and fields of his native city, Teresopolis, in the state of Rio de Janeiro; home of the Brazilian national team, where the international stars came together.

           Early on, Marlon revealed his great talent as a visionary. Upon being restricted from entering Granja Comary (the neighborhood where CBF is located), Marlon came up with a plan to infiltrate the police blockade.  He arrived very early the next day, and he snuck in underneath one of the advertisement billboards at the field.  With much patience, courage and optimism, the result couldn’t have been better:  Marlon met several of the stars that made up the national team that would travel to the 1990 World Cup in Italy.  From then on he didn’t stop frequenting the home of the 5 time world champion national team. With this, Marlon became an icon of Granja Comary. Everybody knew and recognized him after TV channels and news began to advertise the curious and talented “Office Boy of the Granja” that traveled several times with the national team.  What he only needed was a opportunity to serve whom was on the “field”. Some time later, after numerous attempts to become a professional soccer play, the young man realized his mission was something else and that his talent could be used to teach kids the secrets of soccer!

           After two years, coaching children and adolescents in a soccer school in Teresopolis, Marlon received an opportunity to study in Goiania(Central Brazil), and he went to seek his dreams.
In 1998, during his first month in Goiania, Marlon had a dream: “It was a normal day like any other, but that night, I dreamed something different…I dreamed that I was teaching soccer to needy children. In one hand I had a ball, and in the other, a Bible…the dream that night weighed heavy on him, a fantasy of his subconscious mind. The figure of the Bible in that dream intrigued Marlon and he wondered how this dream would relate to his future.  The following day, while talking about his “vision” to a friend, Cleber (RIP), he was able to transcribe from such a “real dream” what would become the mission of the program to reach out:  “Children through Soccer-Project Grow”.

           The project began March 21, 1998 with 21 kids.  More than 3,000 have already worn the jersey of this championship team.  Today there are 9 active teams: 7 in Brazil, (4 in the state of Goias- Goiania, Aparecida, Cidade de Goias, Vianopolis, 2 in the state of Amazonas- Urucara e Sebastiao do Uatuma, and 1 in the State of Rio de Janeiro- Teresopolis.) and 2 outside the country (1 in Paraguay and 1 in Honduras).  The past stars, Evair, Baltazar in conjunction with Marlon, today are the principle patrons of this story that has become a reality in the lives of many children in Brazil, and in the rest of the world.

Marlon Brito is 33 years old, married to Yara (31) and the father of the beautiful Camille (6). He has a bachelor’s degree in Theology (FTCB-01), Post-graduate in Christian Counseling (SPBC). Marlon is the pastor of Celina Park Church of Christ (goiania) and the president of Project Grow.