Hi, everyone. I'm Peter Armstrong, and I'm now serving as treasurer for the newly elected CoCo board of directors. I thought I'd share a few introductory words about myself, then discuss CoCo's finances as well as some of our plans for 2021.

About Me

I have always been into sports and strategy games, from tennis and soccer to Risk and Statis Pro Baseball. I grew up playing kitchen table Scrabble with my parents and friends in Madison, Wisconsin. At some point, I heard there was a Scrabble tournament scene. I didn't know anything about the tourney scene, but it seemed intriguing. I played my first tourney in 1997, in Portland, Oregon, and lost my first 5 games. My first experience in international Scrabble was playing at the 2005 World Championship in London. I was not one of the first U.S. players to switch to Collins, but I eventually made the commitment, and I've found Scrabble to be very interesting, fun, and rewarding ever since.

I went full circle, and after many stops in between, I'm now back in Portland, living with my wife and 5-year-old son. My current hobbies and activities include working on maps and data, cooking, playing Ultimate Frisbee, running, enjoying the Portland food scene, and building with Legos with my son. I feel lucky that I've been able to play Scrabble in beautiful locations with great people in the Northwest, including recent tournaments in Hood River and the Oregon Coast.

Finances

As treasurer, I recently reviewed all of CoCo's finances over the last 12-month period. I found CoCo's accounting to be very thorough and transparent. As of Dec. 19, CoCo has $1,261 cash on hand. We had two larger expenses to cover in early December - hosting our website in 2021 ($216), and filing our 501(c)3 application to gain tax-exempt status from the IRS ($275). We are currently getting estimates for liability insurance, which will cover tournament directors and the board, and is pretty much a necessity for nonprofit organizations.

Next Steps

I am excited at the new possibilities with CoCo, because CoCo represents many of the aspects of Scrabble that I already love. CoCo is the first organization to prioritize CSW play in North America. I believe this will lead not just to a viable Collins tourney scene in North America, but a thriving tourney scene. I am also glad to be involved in an organization that is transparent and accountable to its members. I'm looking forward to participating and helping address some important issues relating to CoCo, including racial justice and diversity in Scrabble, sustainability/climate change, and a safe return to post-pandemic live tournament play.

As for the CoCo finance team, we will be working in the near future to plan our fundraising strategy as we get ready for expenses such as liability insurance and our return to tournament play. I am grateful that Becky Dyer has already contributed greatly in terms of ideas, preparation, and research for our fundraising strategy. I want to thank all of the past and future contributors, as your contributions are integral. It goes without saying that I would also like to thank Jennifer and Evans for all of the work they've done founding and continuing to build CoCo.