This page is a summary of recent PNNA president’s messages, as published in The Nor’wester. For older messages/complete messages, please see back issues of The Nor’wester. There is normally a president’s message in each quarterly issue. Thank you!
President’s Messages 2024-2026 by PNNA President Rick Schulz
1st Q 2026
by PNNA President Rick Schulz (elected 2024).
As you know, last year the Washington State legislature passed a new state budget which the governor signed into law, and one provision of this law removed the sales tax exemption for the sale of coins and bullion. Since then, I’ve been bombarded with questions about what this will mean for collectors and investors. For months my answer has been a frustrating, “we’ll just have to wait and see.” In the past couple months, a little information has surfaced about the state’s plan. According to some individuals who have reached out to state officials, the state’s plan is to focus on dealers who have retail and wholesale licenses to do business in Washington. Out of state dealers would have to complete a complicated application process to do business in the state. This news does not bode well for the future of coin shows in Washington. In fact, we recently learned that the first casualty in this new reality is the Boeing Employee’s Coin Club show that was scheduled for this month (January 2026).
According to a notice sent to members by club president Dave Buehler, “The BECC Board unanimously voted to cancel our January coin show. The recent changes in tax law for the sales of coins impacted the majority of our dealers to the extent that they were not going to attend. To this end we were looking at a $6000 loss to hold the show with a greatly reduced number of dealers and participants who were not willing to spend as much money due to the 10% or more tax they would pay for purchases. We encourage all of our members to write the Washington State legislators to repeal this portion of our tax laws.”
In mid-December, the PNNA Board held a special meeting to discuss these events as they apply to our spring and fall shows. It was decided to move our spring convention and show to the Holiday Inn Columbia Riverfront in Portland and, due to increased costs, reduce it from three days to two, Saturday-Sunday, April 11-12.
Moving the fall show is a little more problematic. Our usual dates are close to those of the Willamette Coin Club show, a major show in Portland that uses the same Holiday Inn venue. The PNNA board is considering several possibilities for the future of our fall show but, at this time, no firm decisions have been made.
What does this mean for small, local club shows in Washington? So far, all shows scheduled are expected to take place, but how they will fare is still uncertain. The first of these is the Olympia Coin Club show scheduled for the end of January. You can find further information about local shows on the PNNA event calendar on this website.
The Washington Coin and Bullion Association is fighting to get the sales tax exemption for the sale of coins and bullion reinstated. They are asking Washington residents to contact their legislative representatives and encourage them to reinstate the exemption. Information on the WCBA, including talking points to address this issue, can be found on their website, https://washingtoncoinandbullionassoc.org. This is a call for ‘all-hands-on-deck.’ Write, email or call your representative. The more voices they hear, the better the chance they will respond positively to this issue. In the meantime, show your support for local shows. For Washington, they are the only shows we will see this year.
PNNA Washington State Fair information:
https://www.pnna.org/wp/events/fair/
PNNA spring convention and coin show information:
https://www.pnna.org/wp/events/spring/
PNNA fall coin show information:
https://www.pnna.org/wp/events/fall/
4th Q 2025
I want to welcome everyone to the 20th Annual PNNA Fall Coin Show, which runs October 3-5, 2025. This show is one of the largest in the Pacific Northwest, drawing about 85 dealers from across the country and the Northwest.
For those PNNA members who received this Nor’wester prior to the show, I look forward to seeing you there, and when you come, bring along someone new to the hobby. A PNNA show is a wonderful place for new, or ‘maybe,’ collectors to view the breadth of numismatics. Non-collecting friends and relatives will find something that draws them in and it won’t take much perusing of dealer tables before you know what interests your guests.
So many of us started collecting by pushing pennies into blue folders. Nothing exotic, but definitely affordable. This seems to be the entry door for most young collectors. An older relative drops a coffee can of pennies and a Whitman folder or two on the dining room table and tells their young prospective collector to “go for it.” Not every kid is receptive to this approach. I tried this with my 11-year-old grandson, and I think all the pennies I gave him ended up at the 7-11! I feel that the best way to get young people interested in collecting is to lay out what is available and let the new collectors decide what interests them.
This is where the PNNA show comes into play. By following a prospective collector, newly exposed to what the hobby has to offer, it doesn’t take long to see what attracts their attention. Then is the time for you to encourage and nurture that interest into a new collector. This is true no matter the age of the budding collector. When I took my grandson to his first show, he zeroed right in on Chinese Pandas. After that it was zodiac coins. It was his choice.
The Fall Coin Show has more to offer new collectors than all the cool stuff to peruse (and talk Grandpa into buying). On Saturday and Sunday there is a treasure hunt just for kids, and if your budding collector is a Scout, we offer a Scouting America coin collecting merit badge workshop on Saturday where Scouts can satisfy requirements for their badge. For more information about our workshops go to “Scouting” on the pnna.org YNs drop down menu.
Hopefully, there will be room for exhibits put together by collectors to showcase their passion. The PNNA’s penny press will be there to crank out elongated coins designed especially for this show for kids of all ages. And lastly, there will be a free drawing for young collectors 17-years-old and younger for numismatic prizes.
Editor’s note: The PNNA 85th Anniversary “coins” shown on the cover of The Nor’wester will be available to purchase for $10 at the show.
We are also planning to have Numismatic Theater programs again this show. As I write this, some presentations are still pending, but one presentation we will have for sure is a seminar on what to do with an inherited coin collection. This is in response to the most often asked questions we hear at this and other PNNA events.
So, as you can see, PNNA coin shows have a lot to offer seasoned collectors, new collectors and ‘maybe’ collectors and folks of all ages.
Have a great time at the show and, if you happen to see me, please say hi, I’d love to meet you. And, as always, happy collecting.
There will be a PNNA board meeting at the fall coin show on Saturday, October 4, at about 6:15 p.m., after the bourse closes.
3rd Q 2025
It’s summertime again and time for all those things that make the season great—backyard barbeques, swimming at your favorite river or beach and just lying around catching some rays. And when it’s too hot or stormy, you can stay indoors and dive into your collections.
Summer is a bit of a slow period for coin collecting. Several local clubs take summer months off, and local shows become few and far between. On the national/international level there are some great shows coming up. The FUN show in Orlando and the Royal Canadian Numismatic Association convention are this month (July). The ANA World’s Fair of Money® is scheduled for August 19-23 in Oklahoma City. If you’ve never been to one of these major shows do yourself a favor and go.
The big news for Washington State collectors, dealers and shows is the state legislature passage and Governor Ferguson signing the budget bill that includes a provision removing the tax exemption on the sale of bullion and coins. This will take effect Jan. 1, 2026, and so far, there is a lot of confusion for both collectors and dealers. This will be the main topic of discussion at the meeting of the PNNA Board of Directors this summer. Because the new tax law doesn’t take effect until next year, all plans for this fall’s PNNA show remain intact. What the future holds is still up in the air. Watch this space for further developments.
One thing that hasn’t changed this year is my enthusiasm for our hobby and for the PNNA’s place in it. One of my favorite duties as president of this fine organization is visiting local clubs and shows around the Pacific Northwest. In the past three months my travels have taken me to clubs and shows throughout much of Western Washington and as far afield as Coeur d’Alene, Idaho and Boise, Idaho. Later this summer and this fall I’ll take in shows in Western Oregon. For many of these shows, I’ll pack along the PNNA penny press. Many of the clubs I visit have penny press dies made up especially for their shows. Kids of all ages love making their own squished penny.
The penny press will also take up residence at this year’s Washington State Fair, which runs from August 29 to September 21. The PNNA’s presence at the Fair is the biggest outreach event of the year. Thousands of visitors stop by our display in the Hobby Hall where volunteers engage with kids of all ages searching for their birth year penny, cranking our squished pennies made especially for the Fair and answering questions about coins, collecting and, most often asked, “what do I do with the collection I just inherited?” We are always looking for volunteers to help staff the display. If this sounds like something you’d like to do, check out the Fair volunteer schedule on the PNNA website, pnna.org, and give me a call or email to sign up or ask questions. For volunteering you will get free passes and free parking to one of the largest fairs in the country. When you’re done having fun at our Hobby Hall display, you can have fun doing the Fair.
Two weeks after the close of the Fair, the PNNA ramps up its fall coin show, scheduled for Oct. 3-5, 2025, in Tukwila. This show and the spring show and convention are two of the largest coin shows on the West Coast. You don’t want to miss them.
So, that is what is happening in PNNA-Land. I hope you have some time this summer to indulge your collecting appetite. If you see me at one of this summer’s events, stop and say “hi,” and if you have any questions, ideas or complaints, let’s talk about them. And, as always, happy collecting.
2nd Q 2025
Hello once again everyone. This second quarter issue of The Nor’wester highlights the 74th Annual PNNA Convention and Spring Coin Show. If you’ve received this issue before April 11-13, I hope you plan to attend. If you are one of the many who picked up this copy at the show, welcome. There is always a lot going on at our spring show, so be sure to read our convention chairman’s message elsewhere in this issue.
Putting on a show of this size takes a lot of work, and most of that work gets done by volunteers. Without our volunteers, there wouldn’t be a show. Before every show it’s my job, along with others, to convince members of our coin collecting community to help out. For those of you who are willing to step up and help out, you have my sincere gratitude and thanks. As I said earlier, without you, the show won’t go on.
PNNA shows are not the only opportunities for volunteering. Every local club depends on volunteers for their very existence (including the PNNA). Every club officer is a volunteer. Every club function needs someone to manage and coordinate its activities (examples: YN program, drawings, auction, club shows, etc.). I know that many local club members are reluctant to commit to something that requires their presence at every meeting. If this describes you, how about volunteering to give an educational program? It is not too hard to talk for 15 to 20 minutes on some aspect of collecting that interests you and you can make it as basic or as elaborate as you wish. If you’re comfortable with public speaking, how about volunteering to give a talk to some groups in your community? Organizations are always looking for guest speakers for their get-togethers.
Don’t wait to be asked to volunteer, ask what you can do for your club. Clubs are there for their membership. A lot of what you get from your club depends on what you can give. Don’t miss a chance to help.
After all that being said, I want to remind everyone that a PNNA event is coming up that requires a large number of volunteers. I’m talking about our display in the Hobby Hall of the Washington State Fair, which runs from August 29 to September 21 this year. Be sure to read the article on the Fair, written by our display coordinator, elsewhere in this issue [2nd Quarter issue of The Nor’wester].
I want to make one final comment on volunteerism. There are many opportunities to volunteer other than local coin clubs. Organizations in your local community (such as the food bank) are always looking for help. If you can spare an hour or two, I know it would be greatly appreciated
Finally, I’d like to remind everyone that there will be a PNNA membership meeting on Saturday, April 12, after the bourse closes for the day. Please join us, ask questions, see who gets awards, etc.
I hope everyone has a great time at this year’s convention and, if you happen to see me, please say hello. And, as always, happy collecting!
1st Q 2025
Hello again everyone. I hope you all enjoyed a wonderful holiday season. As I write this, it is still a few days before Christmas, so we’ll have to compare notes next time we meet.
2024 has been a busy year for yours truly. I’ve had the pleasure of attending coin shows across the Pacific Northwest and look forward to visiting many more in 2025. I take the PNNA’s penny press along to most shows, and it is always a hit with kids of all ages. And I’m always talking about the PNNA and asking folks what we can do to make it a better organization.
I also want to visit more local club meetings this year. I am currently a member of four local clubs in the Puget Sound area so they see a lot of me, but I want to expand out to other clubs when I can. I encourage everyone to occasionally visit different clubs in your area. Every club is different, and all have good ideas. You just might find some features that would work well in your club.
This past year I’ve had the pleasure of speaking to a number of community groups. This is a great way to get the message out about the joy of coin collecting and provides the opportunity to answer the oft asked question, “I have these coins I inherited, now what do I do with them?” If you are comfortable speaking to a group of people, I encourage you to give it a try. There are numerous clubs and organizations that are always on the hunt for guest speakers, and it’s a great way to for local clubs to reach out to their community and be a go-to source for numismatic information. So, what else are we looking forward to this year?
The first big event is the Boeing Employee’s Coin Club show, January 18-19. This is one of the biggest shows of the year in the Northwest and the PNNA will be there. Many of you reading this issue of The Nor’wester likely picked it up at the Boeing show. The penny press will be there with a new die especially for the show. The first PNNA board meeting of the year will take place Saturday, right after the show closes for the day. Our meetings are open to all PNNA members.
The PNNA 74th Annual Convention and Spring Coin Show will be held in Tukwila, Washington, April 11-13. This show, along with our fall show, are the biggest in the Northwest, and draw dealers from across the country.
The PNNA offers one adult and one Young Numismatist (YN) scholarship each year to attend the ANA’s Summer Seminar in Colorado Springs. If you are thinking about attending one of the ANA seminars this year, you need to apply soon. You can find more information and an application in this issue (or on this website).
Our biggest outreach event is coming up in September. I’m talking about the Washington State Fair. It may sound a little strange talking about something that is still nine months down the road, but it takes a lot of planning to do what we do at the Fair. What we do is set up a numismatic display in the Fair’s Hobby Hall. Hobby Hall management requires we staff the display through the run of the Fair, so we need volunteers. I’m bringing this up now because volunteer signup will start in March. Watch this space for more information in the next Nor’wester.
I hope 2025 is a good year for you, your family and your friends. There is a lot going on this year that will continue to fuel your numismatic enthusiasm. If you see me at the Boeing show, please stop and say hello. And, as always, happy collecting.
For older messages, please see back issues of The Nor’wester.