Our Goal

Children of Bulgaria is a not-for-profit organization with the mission to help health, educational, and other institutions to create a better world for children in Bulgaria. To promote this mission, we plan to:

• Actively educate the general public and potential donors about the specific challenges faced by children in Bulgaria – the poorest country of the European Union.
• Cultivate relationships that lead to funding.
• Create individual projects to aid specific areas of need within institutions and organizations which serve children in Bulgaria.
• Ensure that each individual project is approved by our board members and/or our projects committee to secure the best utilization of the available funds.
• Send physical goods and equipment as opposed to money to eliminate the possibility of fraud or misappropriation. Always select the best price.

The Children of Bulgaria Board and Management consists of highly educated and successful members of the ex-pat Bulgarian community. Our Board members and Management  are committed to raising awareness of the needs of the children in Bulgaria, and promoting our organization to secure funding for much-needed projects at various institutions serving these children. Our team is all volunteer based.

Children of Bulgaria is a non-profit, tax-exempt public charity under section 501(c)(3) of the IRS.

Our Model

Children of Bulgaria takes a new approach to financial aid. 98% of the collected donations go to support our projects. We attain that high benefit to cost ratio by purchasing directly from the vendors, as opposed to sending cash to the recipients, and by performing control checks to eliminate the possibility of fraud or misappropriation. We are always determined to get the most value out of the collected funds by negotiating prices, avoiding middlemen and minimizing our operating expenses to less than 2% which we are able to achieve thanks to our all-volunteer team. When needed we use pro-bono experts. To ensure full transparency for our donors we disclose all donations and expenses through our financials and provide regular updates on the progress of each campaign.

Learn more about our model and history in this short video here.

The idea for Children of Bulgaria was born in the summer of 2013, when Polina and Orlin Jordanov went to the Pirogov Emergency Hospital in Sofia, Bulgaria for an emergency visit. Polina and Orlin were moved by the poor conditions in which patients were treated and doctors worked at the hospital. The couple then thought of the youngest patients there – the newborns and the children, and the desire to help became overwhelming.
In November of 2013, the first fundraiser was held in New York with overwhelming success. Dozens of Bulgarian New Yorkers came to the fundraiser, while many ex-pats sent funds from other locations in the US and England. The first shipment of much needed surgical instruments to the Pirogov Hospital pediatric department was sent in March 2014.
Today, Children of Bulgaria continues its work with the vision to improve the well-being, health and education of children in Bulgaria. Our mission is to help health, educational, and other institutions to create a better world for children in Bulgaria.

A copy of our latest annual report may be obtained, upon request, from the organization or from the New York State Attorney General’s Charities Bureau, Attn: FOIL Officer, 28 Liberty Street, New York, New York 10005.

Polina Jordanova

PRESIDENT & CEO

Polina Jordanova has 20 years of experience in the investment banking, venture capital, and data analytics sectors of the financial industry. Polina graduated summa cum laude with a bachelors degree in business administration from Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania. Polina was born in Varna, Bulgaria.

Orlin Jordanov

EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT & DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS

Orlin is business and technology transformation leader with experience across various industries. Orlin has worked for Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Amazon and as  management consultant with Capco. He is currently Strategic Programs Leader at AWS. Orlin holds MBA, MIS and LL.M master degrees. Orlin was born in Sofia, Bulgaria.

Kamen Stoykov

VICE PRESIDENT OF THE BOARD & DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT

Kamen Stoykov has been in the financial services industry for the last 9 years. He currently serves as Director of Implementations at Broadridge working with major banks and brokers around the world implementing best-in-class trading solutions. Kamen has also been on the Alumni Board of Saint Peter’s University for the last 10 years participating in all major fund raising activities. Kamen holds a BS in Economics and Marketing from Saint Peter’s University and MS in Technology Management from NYU School of Engineering. He was born in Varna, Bulgaria.

Pavel Piperkov

BOARD MEMBER & DIRECTOR OF FINANCE

Pavel Piperkov has been in the assurance & advisory field since 2012 and is currently employed at one of the largest diversified companies in the US, with businesses in the insurance, energy, hospitality and packaging industries. He specializes in financial, operational and IT audits as well as data-driven advisory services. Pavel holds B.A. and M.S in Accounting from CUNY Queens College. He was born in Shumen, Bulgaria.

Tsvetelina Kemalova

DIRECTOR OF MARKETING

Tsvetelina has 11 years of experience in various areas of the marketing field. She currently serves as Digital Marketing Lead at Dale Carnegie, a global personal and professional development training company. Tsvetelina is responsible for the brand elevation strategy, PR, website traffic, lead generation, and revenue growth. She graduated Mu Kappa Tau with BBA in Marketing from Berkeley College, NY. Tsvetelina was born in Plovdiv, Bulgaria.

Assen Harizanov

LEGAL ADVISER

Assen Harizanov is a licensed attorney in the State of New York. He holds a J.D. from St. John’s University School of Law and a B.A. in Political Science from Queens College. During the years he has honed his skills in various fields such as criminal, immigration, international, real estate, and business law. His current areas of practice are real estate and business law. Born in Kazanlak, Bulgaria.

Iglika Mateeva-Drincheva

IT/UX DESIGNER

Iglika has over 5 years of experience as a freelance User Experience and User Interface Designer. She’s helped German and American startups and corporations alike build user-driven products and increase their revenue. Iglika holds a Bachelor’s degree in Media Studies from the University of Mannheim, as well as a Master’s degree in General Management from The University of Applied Science in Leipzig, Germany. She was born in Varna, Bulgaria.

Maya Stephanov

PR COORDINATOR

Maya Stephanova has worked as an office manager and has experience in network and product marketing. Maya holds an associate degree in science and has also studied at the University of Economics in Varna, Bulgaria. She has done volunteer work for her local community in the past. Maya was born in Karlovo, Bulgaria.