Boardwalk Ambassadors
Conner has loved puzzles for as long as he can remember. He began assembling 50-piece puzzles at just 3 years old and was completing 1,000-piece puzzles on his own by age 6. In 2023, at 9 years old, Conner and his mom discovered the world of speed puzzling — and he hasn’t looked back since.
Today, Conner is one of the top young speed puzzlers in the country. Alongside his pairs partner, Josh Trauger, he earned the title of 2026 US National Jigsaw Puzzle Pairs Champion. He is also a member of “Three and a Half Men,” placing second at the 2026 US Jigsaw Nationals, He is also a three-time Texas State Champion.
Outside of puzzling, Conner enjoys playing basketball and golf. He lives in Houston with his parents and older brother.
As a proud Boardwalk Puzzles brand ambassador, Conner loves Boardwalk’s incredible artwork, high-quality piece cuts, and especially the new Speedmaster line. Through his ambassador role, he hopes to inspire more kids to discover and join the puzzling community.
Hector (PuzzledAndConfused) is a quirky, fun-loving puzzler passionate about building community and bringing people together through the joy of puzzling. After discovering the hobby in the summer of 2025, puzzling quickly became an instant obsession! Before the end of the year, PuzzledandConfused had completed more than sixty 1,000 piece puzzles along with over twenty 500 piece puzzles.
Among the many puzzle brands explored throughout that journey, Boardwalk Puzzle Company quickly became a standout! Hector believes what makes Boardwalk especially enjoyable is its clear understanding of what makes a puzzle truly FUN! From thoughtfully curated artwork to satisfying build experiences, Boardwalk creates puzzles with puzzlers in mind — delivering creativity, quality, and fun consistently.
Outside of puzzling, Hector enjoys staying active through sports like dodgeball and pickleball, riding his bike, and spending time laughing with family and friends. Through engaging puzzle content and a genuine enthusiasm for the hobby, Hector continues to encourage others to connect, unwind, and build community one piece at a time.
Jarom and Megan did not grow up puzzling. In fact, they didn’t see the appeal. That all changed in 2024 after friends invited them to a community event, where they discovered speed puzzling and were instantly hooked!
Since then, they've fully embraced puzzling, often completing 10-20 puzzles a week. They compete regularly in solo, pairs, and team competitions and have found they stand out, as there are very few husband-and-wife speed puzzling duos.
The love for puzzling has become a family affair in the Chung household, with their three young children also catching the bug and often competing together as a family. Jarom and Megan never expected this hobby to become such a shared passion but are grateful for the joy, challenges, and wonderful friends it provides. When they’re not puzzling, they are laughing with their kids, eating at new restaurants, and exploring new cities.
Javier’s love for puzzling began in 2021 when he started seriously building puzzles with his family. What started as a relaxing hobby quickly became a true passion and creative outlet. Over the years, his collection has grown to more than 700 puzzles, inspiring him to create his YouTube channel, “Javy’s Puzzle Odyssey,” where he shares his love for the hobby with a growing puzzle community.
Through his channel, Javier creates content focused on puzzle hauls, reviews, speed puzzling, and large builds. He enjoys helping introduce new people to puzzling while connecting with longtime puzzlers who appreciate quality craftsmanship and beautiful artwork. One of the reasons he enjoys Boardwalk Puzzles so much is the company’s high-quality puzzles, thoughtful packaging, and artwork created by real artists.For Javier, puzzling has become much more than just a hobby. It has helped him manage anxiety and support his mental health while also connecting him with so many amazing people in the puzzle community. The creativity, focus, and sense of accomplishment that come with puzzling continue to inspire him every day, and he loves sharing through those experiences.
Jen fell in love with puzzles at just 3 years old, sitting on the living room floor doing the big Disney board puzzles, and that love has only continued to grow over the years. In November of 2024, she discovered speed puzzling and has been hooked ever since, even if she’s not always the speediest!
Jen loves sharing her passion for puzzling through social media, local puzzle swaps, competitions, and community events. As a founding member and board member of the Florida Jigsaw Puzzle Association, she enjoys helping connect puzzlers together throughout the state. Outside of puzzling, Jen is a mom and full-time elementary school teacher who loves to share her love of puzzles with her amazing little boy and her students.
Jen shares her puzzling adventures on Tiktok, Instagram and occasionally Twitch where she puzzles live with viewers.
Jen’s interest in puzzles really started when she and her husband began doing them as a way to unwind and spend quality time together. It became the norm to always have a puzzle out while watching their favorite TV shows or movies.
Last year, Jen was introduced to the world of speed puzzling when a good friend invited her to participate in her first speed puzzling competition. She loves how puzzling keeps her mind engaged and constantly challenged, but racing against the clock has added a whole new layer of excitement to the hobby. She quickly became obsessed and now regularly takes part in speed puzzling competitions. Her puzzle collection grew so much as a result that she had to create a dedicated room for them!
Puzzling has become much more than just something she does in her free time—it’s become part of her daily routine. She still puzzles for fun, but she also enjoys pushing herself to get faster and better with every puzzle. The focus, the thrill of solving a tough puzzle, and the sense of accomplishment from placing that final piece keep her coming back for more.
Jose has been puzzling since he was five years old. Back in his native country of Ecuador, he used to solve the same wooden puzzle over and over again. He’s always liked brain teasers and puzzles like Sudoku, and, of course, jigsaw puzzles.
Puzzling has been his way of relaxing and not thinking about the world. There was a time he was doing a lot of the 3D puzzle landmarks like the Empire State Building or the Eiffel Tower.
Jose is a human rights advocate and ally. You can tell by the t-shirts he sometimes wears when on social media or during a competition. Being an immigrant and having a platform through social media allows him to bring to light issues that are important to him. He loves music, especially rock and metal, and he listens to it while puzzling.
He found out about speed puzzling at the end of 2024 when he discovered a puzzler content creator on YouTube. She introduced him to the speed puzzling community and contests. In May 2025, after coming back from a cruise for his birthday, he decided to share his love for puzzles on TikTok and Instagram. Sharing his content on social media has allowed him to meet great people online and in person during the USAJPA Nationals.
He likes to create puzzle content that is different from others, pushing the boundaries and changing how jigsaw puzzling is done!
Megan has been puzzling for as long as she can remember. Her love for puzzling started when she was a little girl and has only grown over the years. Puzzling gives her the perfect escape to unwind. It’s not just a hobby—it's one of her favorite ways to relax and recharge.
While there is always a casual puzzle to do on her table, Megan also enjoys participating in speed puzzling competitions. She competes locally, nationally, and even trekked to Spain for the World Jigsaw Puzzle Championship. So whether she’s puzzling for leisure or racing against the clock, each puzzle is a unique problem to solve, and she’s always up for the challenge. Megan never expected this hobby to become such a big part of her life, but is grateful for the experiences and community that has come from it.
When Megan isn’t puzzling, you can find her outdoors—hiking, rock climbing, and adventuring with her family. She also enjoys creating (arts/crafts) and spending time with her husband, daughter, and dog.
Paula Marques, known in the puzzling community as HuelessPaula, is a passionate speed puzzler, community leader, and advocate for the cognitive and social benefits of jigsaw puzzles. Based in South Florida, she has built a strong presence in both competitions and on social media, where she loves inspiring others to discover the joy, challenge, and connection that puzzling can bring—no matter their age or skill level.
What started as simple “mommy time” and a way to unwind quickly became a true passion and an important part of Paula’s life. Today, she is a proud board member of the Florida Jigsaw Puzzle Association and is dedicated to helping grow and strengthen the puzzling community throughout Florida and beyond.
As a colorblind puzzler, Paula’s motto—“Trust the shape, not the shade”—has become a reflection of both her puzzling style and her outlook on life: adapt, persevere, and enjoy the process. Through her role as a Boardwalk Puzzle Ambassador, she hopes to continue inspiring others and connecting communities—one piece at a time.
Tammy McLeod
TikTok: @tammymcleodpuzzler
Instagram: @tammymcleodpuzzler
Facebook: TammyMcLeodPuzzler
YouTube: @TammyMcLeodPuzzler
Tammy is an avid jigsaw puzzler who holds 2 Guinness World Records. She is one of the founders of the USA Jigsaw Puzzle Association and has competed at the World Jigsaw Puzzle Championship numerous times.
She loves all things puzzles, and shares her puzzling adventures on YouTube and Instagram (@TammyMcLeodPuzzler).
Zoe grew up doing jigsaw puzzles but is a recent convert to speed puzzling. Her favorite piece count is 500 and her average time is in the 75-90 minute range, though she finally hit her first sub-1 hour time. Zoe's preferred speed puzzling audio is Dropout TV's Dimension 20 D&D (Dungeons and Dragons) live play show.
She's trying to get through all the Boardwalk 500s (and not just so she can see her floor again). Besides puzzling, Zoe loves reading and watching MLS soccer (go Sounders!) She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her partner and two puzzle helper cats.
Allen has been puzzling his entire life. As a child he remembers putting together jigsaw puzzles during school breaks, often repeating the same puzzle since his family didn’t own many puzzles. Allen entered the speed puzzling community in 2022 after hearing about the world championship online. Since then he has competed in the Utah Jigsaw Puzzle Championship (2023 and 2024), Boardwalk Puzzle Company Tournament (2024 and 2025) and the National Jigsaw Puzzle Championship (2024).
He is a co-founder and board president of the Utah Jigsaw Puzzle Association, an organization dedicated to promoting jigsaw puzzling throughout the state of Utah. His favorite size puzzles are between 200 and 500 pieces because it’s fun to put together a puzzle in one sitting. Occasionally he’ll work on larger size puzzles when he finds one with a good picture. Allen really enjoys being a part of the local puzzle community and has hosted several events, both casual and competitive.
Andrea Peng is a lifelong puzzler turned speed puzzler, currently living in San Francisco. She loves puzzle images with small, busy details and never shies away from a challenge. Her puzzling accomplishments include a 4th place individual title at the World Championships in 2023 and a 3rd place pairs title in 2024. In 2024 Andrea was part of the first US Team to place 1st in the World with her best friends and team the “Busy Birdies”.
Her favorite jigsaw related activities include puzzling late at night with her family to finish a big puzzle before bed, competing in pairs competitions with all three of her children in 2024, thrift shopping for unique images and brands and the social events that come with the large competitions. Puzzle related travel has taken her in the US to Seattle, Columbus, San Diego and Atlanta. Internationally she has puzzled in Spain, France and Finland with top puzzlers from around the world including 2 – 24 hour puzzle marathons!
Jonathan found out about speed puzzling in late 2019 after hearing about the first-ever World Championship, which was held in Spain. In January 2020, he created the Speed Puzzling Facebook group to try to gather information about opportunities to compete. He teamed up with a local science museum in West Texas to host his first in-person contest the next month. Then COVID hit, and he started hosting contests regularly via Zoom. Jonathan launched SpeedPuzzling.com and helped create the USA Jigsaw Puzzle Association in early 2020. After hosting 82 contests, he finally got to compete himself--at the 2022 USA Jigsaw Nationals.
Jonathan is hosting all 50 State Championships in 2025 (14 in person and 36 via Zoom), and looks forward to running his first Speed Puzzling Cruise in July. He has now hosted over 300 speed puzzling contests, though he gets to compete only about twice per year. He can't wait for the day when others are hosting events regularly near his hometown--so he can join in! Jonathan is so grateful for the ongoing support of his wife, Erica, and their 6 children (ages 13 - 27).