President's
Message (2007)
by PNNA President
Larry Gaye
4th Quarter 2007
One can only say WOW to the outcome of the most recent ANA Board of Governors election. A clean sweep did indeed materialize with the hopes of many riding on the results. While there has been a lot of feedback in the numismatic press it is apparent that the reassignment of Executive Director Christopher Cipoletti to prepare for the upcoming court action initiated by the ANA speaks volumes.
I was at the Convention as a National Volunteer and can tell you the feelings on the floor ran very high. It was quite ironic that at the awards banquet on Saturday evening where the new board was sworn in, outgoing ANA President Robert Horton Jr. awarded Mr. Cipoletti a Presidential Award. The next day the new board placed him on “… paid administrative leave to … focus all of his attention on preparations for the lawsuit against former employees in which he is co-plaintiff with the ANA,” and then appointed past President Hallenbeck as interim Director.
Hopefully the ANA and the hobby in general can now focus on what they do best, act on behalf of collectors in the fields of education and promoting the hobby. Don’t expect change to be fast or always what we hope for, but do expect the new board to act with a clean slate and be judged by that when they run for reelection.
As you may be aware, our own Joe Boling was elected to the board, and our hats are off to him for his past service to our corner of numismatics as well as his tireless service to the ANA as Chief Judge.
I’m sure I speak for the entire membership of the PNNA when I say congratulations to the new board and thank the outgoing board for all of its hard work for us. The one thing we should all remember when passions run high that “this is my hobby, I do it for fun.”
See you in Portland, October 12-14th, for the WCC/PNNA “Mini-Con.” (Dealers/committee only on Friday.)
3rd Quarter 2007
No message.
2nd Quarter 2007
By the time you read this I’ll be in my last year as president of the PNNA. It has for sure been an interesting few years from the time I first was asked to run for the board to my second term as president.
I would ask everyone to consider becoming more involved in the “politics” of being a board member simply because there really is no politics to scare you off. What I have found is a group of people that have a singular mission, to make the hobby of numismatics more interesting and varied for their fellow collectors. Everyone that has served on this board has worked hard with this in mind. If we fail at something it is not for lack of trying. The “simple” task of finding someone to speak and people to participate in the annual convention’s Numismatic Theatre is indeed not so simple. We could bring the best in the world and there would still be only five people in the audience. This is something I don’t understand, but we keep working on it!
Take a few minutes and consider running for the board at the next election, don’t wait to be asked, “just do it” as the Nike add suggests. I’m not very big on sports analogies, but step up to the free throw line and take your best shot. You and a lot of others will be thankful you did. No one asked Michael Jordan if he wanted to be in the pro basketball hall of fame, he just did it.
See you at the convention!
1st Quarter 2007
Wow, another year has gone bye, way too fast to suit me. I’ll try to make this short and sweet. Preparations are in full swing for the PNNA Convention while the Willamette Coin Club is very happy with the outcome of the Mini-Con held this past October. We really have the makings of a most excellent show in Portland. Like the Convention, it will take a few years to build up attendance even more; suffice it to say we are on the way. Believe it or not, I just received what we hope is the last bill for the October show!
I also was a bit (a very small bit) involved in the Salem Numismatic Society’s 50th Anniversary celebration held over this past Thanksgiving weekend. Those folks put on a fantastic show. They took a chance and moved to a larger venue. It was very nice walking into a show with sixty five dealers; this type of activity really impresses attendees and hopefully they will keep this format in the future and the show will blossom more.
When the Convention roles around it means I will be in my last year as president. I view this as a mixed blessing in that it’s time for new blood and as well as time for the ancient régime to relinquish the reigns and usher in the new. Ideas are the life blood of any organization and I URGE new folks to consider running as an officer or board member; new ideas are always needed.
I would like to take this opportunity to wish all of our members a very Happy New Year and want to thank all of you for your support. We have a strong club, let’s make it better. Take care and Keep Smiling!
