Our team
Arms Wide Open was founded in April 2022 by a diverse group of volunteers—representing various nationalities and professional backgrounds—who have been actively supporting refugees in Bulgaria since the very beginning of the war in Ukraine. Our team includes people of different religious beliefs, cultural identities, and nationalities, including individuals from conflict-affected countries. While these differences may shape how outsiders perceive our work, our experience shows that diversity is a powerful strength that enriches our approach and unites us in pursuit of our shared mission.
Our team
Anna Hakman
/Chairman and Member of the Management Board/
Anna is a successful leader and visionary in the nonprofit sector and has served as the CEO of the Arms Wide Open Association since its founding in 2022. With over 10 years of experience in project management in the corporate and private sectors, investigative journalism, and a passion for social work with vulnerable communities, Anna has played a key role in advancing the organization’s mission to provide essential integration services and support for children and families seeking refuge. Under her leadership, the association has grown exponentially, expanding its reach to numerous community members. Her innovative approach to fundraising and building strong partnerships has resulted in sustainable projects supported by private, corporate, and international donors. Under her leadership, the organization implemented 2 large-scale educational projects involving more than 250 children and 150 adults in just 1 year. The organization also won a large-scale project for an Integration Center for Ukrainian refugees, whose implementation begins in autumn 2023, under the auspices of Sofia Municipality and funded by the EEA and Norway Grants.
Credits to Yana Lozeva for the project “Creative Communication”, funded by Active Citizens Fund Bulgaria.
Vasyl Tretiakov /Deputy Chairman and Member of the Board of Directors/
Vasyl was born in 1984 in Ukraine and grew up in Zaporozhye. In 2001 he moved to Kiev to study and graduated with a master’s in radio engineering. Since 2015 he has been living and working in Sofia. He has two children aged 13 and 16. He works in the field of information technology in the field of systems integration. He is one of the main drivers for the founding of the Arms Wide Open Association and a tireless do-gooder.
Credits to Aleksandr Aleksov
Biser Smilenski
/Co-founder and member of the Management Board/
Biser has a master degree in history and has built a 15 years successful political career – starting as member, making it to the deputy chairman of the youth-organization for 4 years and being 7 years secretary general in the social democracy party. During that time he mastered his leadership, organizational, project and people management skills and at the peak of his career he decided to resign and focus on raising his 5 children while managing customer support family business. Passion to work with people and help ones in need led him to join newly formed organization Arms Wide Open in 2022 where he could apply his skills and knowledge. Bulgaria has been historically very welcoming and open to one’s in need – in the last 100 years hosting 6 waves of refugees – Biser believes being a refugee is not a normal state of being and anyone can lose their home and peace at any instance. It is in our hands to help each other feel home and safe as much as possible.
Credits to Yana Lozeva for the project “Creative Communication”, funded by Active Citizens Fund Bulgaria.
Maria Kacharava
/Co-founder/
Maria has 12 years experience in people managing and project managing. Her passion is helping people find their strengths and through collaboration achieve set goals in ever changing reality. She has been supporting different initiatives on a personal level but was deeply touched by the struggle of mothers with children forced to leave their home to save their lives. First as a volunteer in Mother Ukraine NGO as transport coordinator she started to dream of doing something more – connecting and helping different NGOs to collaborate and help each other. It led to increase of communication, building trust and several successful projects and founding of Arms Wide Open – an organization which does not split refugees by the country they are coming from but helps adapt, integrate in the society and create connections and support each other.
Credits to Yana Lozeva for the project “Creative Communication”, funded by Active Citizens Fund Bulgaria.
Milena Georgieva
/Co-founder and Administrative Director/
Milena has rich experience working for the community on a voluntary basis through various initiatives. After completing her studies in Political Science over 20 years ago, she was part of the non-profit organization Institute of Liberal Politics focusing on specific problems of the society. This was followed by more than 10 years of background in the corporate sphere, but Milena never stopped participating in different initiatives with main focus on improving the quality of life of vulnerable groups. Back in 2016 Milena participated in the 11th edition of the Reproductive Health Day, and together with a team proposed an important change which aims to help families with reproductive issues. This proposal was accepted 1 year later. Milena’s true passion is helping people. Her encounter with Anna Hakman was while organizing the gathering and delivering of clothes, food and supplies for the Ukrainian refugees in the beginning of the crisis. She is driven mainly by the strong will to work towards expanding the support for vulnerable groups, specifically women and children, and human rights protection.
Aleksandr Marchenko /Director Youth Programmes/
Throughout his professional career, Alexander has specialized in operational management and has played a key role in a wide range of diverse projects for both children and adults. In 2010, he served as the Chair of the Student Council at AISEC Moldova and the ASEM Economic Academy, where he worked to unite and enhance the skills of students in the fields of economics and global finance. In 2014, he coordinated a teen program in the competition “Build Your Own Business from Scratch” in Odesa, aimed at introducing young people to the tourism market in the country. In 2016, he was the coordinator of a project focused on developing international relations for a teen summer camp with a capacity of 250 participants. For four consecutive years, Alexander has coordinated the “Arms Wide Open” Summer School. His fresh and innovative approach enables him to design projects that are both effective and deeply engaging for their target audiences.
Credits to Yana Lozeva for the project “Creative Communication”, funded by Active Citizens Fund Bulgaria.
Liudmila Ivanyuk
/Financial director/
Liudmila arrived in Bulgaria as a refugee at the beginning of the war in Ukraine. Her children participated in a summer camp organized by the Arms Wide Open team, and she later became a member of the team herself. With 15 years of experience in the accounting field in Ukraine, she now supports the financial management of project implementation. Her previous work included accounting support for both individual departments and entire enterprises, equipping her with skills in record keeping, budget planning, employee communication, and other professional competencies that make her a valuable part of the team.
Credits to Aleksandr Aleksov
Lalita Koshel
/Methodological Programme Coordinator/
Lalita is a committed and dedicated professional with extensive experience in teaching both children and adults, focusing on Bulgarian language and the humanities. She holds a degree in Psychology from the University of Veliko Tarnovo “St. Cyril and St. Methodius” (2012–2016) and has a strong linguistic background, including training at the “Alliance Lingua” Language Center and the Primorsky Ukrainian-Bulgarian Lyceum. Her professional journey includes working as a teacher of philosophy-related subjects at the High School of Languages “Prof. Dr. Assen Zlatarov” (2016), as a private tutor in Bulgarian language (2014–2018), and as an educator at the “Arms Wide Open” Summer School (since 2022). For four consecutive years, Lalita has both taught and developed a specialized methodology tailored to children aged 6–9, including Ukrainian children. She also provides exam preparation for national external assessments and Bulgarian language and literature matriculation exams. Lalita is known for her individualized and creative approach to every child, adapting her methods to meet students’ specific needs. She continuously improves her skills through various trainings and seminars. Deeply devoted to the cause of inclusive education, Lalita believes in the power of personal example and empathy.
Credits: Kristina Zbarskaya
Dimitar Dimitrov
/Programmes Coordinator/
Dimitar Dimitrov is a writer, tour guide, youth trainer, and contributor to “Uspelite”—the largest digital media outlet in Bulgaria dedicated entirely to positive and constructive journalism. He has been involved in the creation and development of various projects and organizations in the fields of tourism, education, cultural and historical heritage, and youth policy. Dimitar served as Bulgaria’s UN Youth Delegate for the 2015–2016 term and participated in the U.S. State Department’s Community Solutions Program in 2018. During the Petkov government, he was appointed an advisor at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on behalf of “Democratic Bulgaria.” Since July 2022, he has been actively engaged in the education and integration of Ukrainian students with refugee status in Bulgaria. He holds a BA in Political Science from Kingston University in London and a Master’s degree in Theory and History of International Relations from the London School of Economics and Political Science. His master’s thesis received the highest distinction in the university’s History Department. Since 2013, Dimitar has been civically active and widely recognized for championing various causes, including remote voting rights for Bulgarians abroad and the protection of the Pirin Mountains. In 2020, he was named one of Darik Radio’s “40 Under 40.”