Original date sent: March 10, 2017
I prepared the following statement, and addressed those present at League tonight earlier this evening, about a half hour ago. The contents are below:
Last week, the MSCA Board came together and made several decisions. One of them was making me President…I haven’t figured out why. I am pleased to announced that I have accepted the role…I haven’t figured out why… I kid. It will be an honor and a privilege to serve as your next MSCA President for the next year, and hopefully years to come. My knowledge is eclectic, my mind is eccentric, and my passion electric.
As for promises, I will make a few. I promise to make mistakes. They will happen, and I promise to learn from them. I promise not to change who I am and what I am about, but instead evolve to who I want to be and what I want to become. Finally, I promise I cannot do this alone. There are things I see, things I want to do, and things that start with you. All of you here are the reason the MSCA exists and will continue to exist.
There are too many people to thank. Thank you everyone for your support into the next year. A round of applause for David Kuhns, serving the MSCA over the span of 5 decades. A round of applause for Daniel Voje, our most active tournament director, and without question one of the finest. I have learned so much under these two gentleman. For that I am grateful and blessed.
I and the entire MSCA has another individual left to thank. I am embarrassed to say I have not formally addressed this individual for all the time I’ve seen him, so I better do it tonight. I have observed his games at TCCL, and he has likely observed me watching. The clock he owns was made by him, and is the envy of many a chessplayer, including me.
George Tiers is a big reason why the MSCA is what it is today. Creator of this very league. Creator of the MSCA Scholastic. Creator of the one-day tournament that we refer to as the Tornado and variants thereof. A living legend in his own right with his many contributions to US Chess, the Association, and his past tenure as president on the board. Allow me, as one of my first actions as MSCA President to step off this stage, and shake your hand before we begin tonight’s matches.
Thank you everyone for being here. Here’s to the MSCA, here’s to chess, and here’s to tonight. Good luck in your matches everyone. Thank you for your time.
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