Ligia Apostoaia
Board of Directors
RUF Angel
Secretary of the Board, CEO of MDL Investments
Founding Member
Volunteer
Teacher
Ligia’s charity involvement began at a very young age, helping her family foundation with the distribution of humanitarian aid to the families in need in the area immediately. Today she continues to do what she is most passionate about: doing good.
Experienced Fundraising Professional and non-profit strategist with 18 years of experience in the European and US fields. I teach fundraisers how to organize their 1st fundraising campaign. I lived, studied and worked in Silicon Valley for 9 years.
Ioana Chirita
Board of Advisors
RUF Liaison to the Board of Advisors Member of the Ethics and Legal Committee
Staff
Romanian-qualified attorney with a focus on mergers & acquisitions, corporate and commercial matters, and project finance.
I have been living in Amsterdam, Netherlands for 15 years. I have experience in the hospitality industry and Human Resources Specialist. I collaborate with Rompro Foundation Netherlands, RoBoost Romania and RUF. My passion is organizing events and fairs.
I am a lucky person from all points of view: I have a wonderful family, reliable friends, I do the things I like and everything brings me a lot of satisfaction.
Diana Gini serves as Chief Growth Officer at RUF, where she is deeply committed to strengthening the Romanian diaspora community. She is also a Founding Angel and RUF Ambassador to Madrid for the organization.
Robert is passionate about cultural exchange and social impact. He has a background in bridging cultural gaps and fostering positive change through civil society and NGOs, and he previously worked at Impact Hub Bucharest.
Finance professional with more than 12 years of experience in sustainable/impact investment
Originally from Romania, I relocated to the US in 2013 with a Bachelor's degree in Economics. Currently, I serve as the administrative expert at RUF, where I handle all accounting and administrative issues. I have a passion for teaching young children.
Mihai Lehene
Board of Directors
Founding Angel
Founder, Romanian United Foundation
Founder
Volunteer (full)
Teacher
Mihai is the Owner of MDL Investments, a real-estate and VC family-office with a focus on emerging technologies, including fintech, biotech and crypto. In 2020 Mihai resigned his business roles to run RUF, and in 2022 he was elected as President of FORA.
Mihaela, a RUF founding member and U.S. repatriate, serves as the primary link to Romanian nonprofit partners—identifying high-impact initiatives, ensuring grant compliance, and cultivating strong relationships between RUF and the nonprofit sector.
Georgiana is bringing extensive experience in Communication & Marketing gained from her previous roles as a journalist in the biggest media trust in Romania and coordinator of international campaigns for well-established clients at Ogilvy and Grey G2.
I am a dedicated member of the Romanian United Foundation (RUF) Core Team, I'm serving as the "Trips to Romania" Program Manager. Born and raised in Romania, I immigrated to the United States in 2006 at the age of 23.
At RUF, I coordinate annual Trips to
Adriana Preda is the CEO of The Social Incubator, a Romanian nonprofit supporting vulnerable youth's social and professional development, and the first Romanian Obama Foundation Scholar for 2023-2024.
Graduated from UIC, College of Business, with a degree in finance and works as a Digital Manager at Mainland. Fun facts: prefers a camera, unable to make a choice between hiking a mountain or walking in the sand, an incurable optimist.
MSW from Washington University in St. Louis, firm believer in the importance of building a strong Romanian community to enrich the lives of individuals, their families, and society as a whole. Currently volunteers as Founding Angels Liaison for RUF