In order to ensure the responsible management of the funds it raises to enable the Ecumenical Patriarchate to fulfill its apostolic mission in perpetuity, the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew Foundation has now established an Audit Committee. The Chair of the new committee is Mrs. Maria Allwin.

This committee will ensure financial transparency and accountability, which are essential principles for the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew Foundation. This transparency and accountability will reassure the FOUNDERS, who have each pledged at least $100,000, and encourage more of the Greek Orthodox faithful to support this noble initiative in service of the Holy Mother Church.

Also serving on the Audit Committee are Archon George E. Safiol, Archon Andreas D. Comodromos, and Archon Carl R. Hollister.

His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros of America said: “The formation of the Audit Committee of the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew Foundation is a vivid demonstration of how seriously the Foundation takes its responsibility to God and His people. This committee will ensure complete accountability in all the initiatives of the Foundation.”

Dr. Anthony J. Limberakis, National Commander of the Order of Saint Andrew the Apostle, Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, and Chair of the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew Foundation, remarked: “The Audit Committee shows our unshakeable commitment to ensuring absolute transparency in all the activities of the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew Foundation, which will give confidence to current and future donors. We have a fantastic Audit Committee with an outstanding Chair in Maria Allwin, and Committee Members who make us all proud!”

Mrs. Allwin stated: “The focus of the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew Foundation is on ensuring the ongoing financial stability and security of our Holy Mother Church of Constantinople. The Audit Committee comprises an essential aspect of this mission, as it will provide those who wish to come to the aid of His All-Holiness with the information that need to be sure that their donations are being put to worthy use.”

Mrs. Allwin is an extraordinary and devout Orthodox Christian with family roots in Imvros, the birthplace of His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew. She is a graduate of Hunter College and worked at Morgan Stanley early in her career, before becoming active in the nonprofit arena. Together with her late husband, James M. Allwin, she formed Aetos Capital LLC and The Allwin Family Foundation. She serves on the Dartmouth College and Bucknell University Parents Board, the Committee for Education and Technology at the Museum of Modern Art, and is a volunteer at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. She has assisted the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, the New York Women’s Foundation and Communities in Schools, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to dropout prevention. Keeping her late husband’s legacy, she has been involved with the Allwin Initiative at the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College. She serves on the Archdiocesan Council of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America and as Secretary of the Leadership 100 Board of Trustees.

Archon Safiol, Vice Chair of the Foundation, is superbly qualified to serve the Foundation on the Audit Committee, bringing to it the benefits of his tremendous experience in the audit field, having served with distinction as Chair of the Leadership 100 Audit Committee, and also as Chair of the Audit Committee of the Order of Saint Andrew the Apostle, Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate. Archon George has served for 20 years on the National Council of the Order of Saint Andrew, and in 2018 received the Nicholas J. Bouras Award for Extraordinary Archon Stewardship. While serving on the Archdiocesan Council, he was a member of its Executive Committee. A fulfilled member of Leadership 100, Archon Safiol has served as L100 Treasurer and on its Executive Committee and has been a member of the L100 Board of Trustees for 21 years. He was instrumental in launching, with the approval of Archbishop Demetrios, the $10 million Hellenic College, Holy Cross School of Theology Sponsorship Program which was initiated to provide scholarships to our seminarians and address the shortage of priests in America ($1 million per year for ten years).

Archon Comodromos is a successful CPA with his own firm, Comodromos Associates, PA, and nearly 40 years of accounting experience; he will bring this top-notch professional accounting competence to the Foundation. He has offered pro bono guidance in his capacity as Assistant Treasurer of the Order of Saint Andrew for many years. Archon Comodromos serves as president and managing partner of Comodromos Associates, which is based in Paramus, New Jersey. He has served several positions on the Board of the Cyprus Federation of America and was elected Supreme President for two consecutive terms, from 1991 to 1995. He has been awarded the Ellis Island Medal of Honor for outstanding contributions to America and distinguished service and of the Newcomen Society of America 1978 Award. In 2000, Andreas was honored as Man of the Year by Evangelismos Tis Theotokou Greek Orthodox Church in Jersey City and in 2001 received the prestigious “Justice for Cyprus Award” from the Cyprus Federation of America. In December of 2017, he received the highest award from the PanGregorians in New Jersey. He has also served on the National Council of the Order of Saint Andrew.

Archon Hollister has superlative experience in the world of finance as president of L.M. Kohn & Company, an Investment Advisory and Brokerage firm in Cincinnati, Ohio, managing 60 branch offices with more than $3.5 billion in client assets. With more than 20 years of experience in the Securities Industry, Hollister holds a Master’s Degree in Finance from Webster University and a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics from Grove City College. He is a retired U.S. Army Major with 21 years of active and reserve service, of which 17 years were in Special Operations, with tours of duty in Central America and Central Asia. As commander of the Khost Provincial Reconstruction Team, Afghanistan, he was awarded the Bronze Star in 2005 for distinguished achievement. Archon Carl’s service as Supreme President of AHEPA, including his service as an executive board member on the AHEPA National Housing Corporation, and his heroic service to our nation, is truly exemplary and inspirational. He also serves on the National Council of the Order of Saint Andrew, and is a member of the Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) Correspondent Services Advisory Council.

The Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew Foundation is a watershed initiative of the Order of Saint Andrew to ensure the financial health of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in perpetuity. It has to date raised $14,172 million, including a matching $1 million grant from the Nicholas J. and Anna K. Bouras Foundation.