Meet the Incredible Speakers
2026 Keynote General Session speakers
Les Stephens
FIRE CHIEF
San Marcos Fire Department
Battalion Chief
Dan Munsey
FIRE CHIEF/FIRE WARDEN
San Bernardino County Fire
Patrick Kenny
CHIEF (RET.)
MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS SPEAKER
David Coatney
AGENCY DIRECTOR
TEEX
Battalion Chief
Todd Blyleven
SPEAKER & PODCAST HOST
“I’m Going In”
Frank Viscuso
DEPUTY CHIEF (RET.)
Kearny Fire Department, New Jersey
AUTHOR, CONSULTANT, SPEAKER
Kerry Henderson
BATTALION CHIEF
James City County FD
HM Leadership Concepts / The Heat of Command Podcast
Battalion Chief
Kyle Matousek
LIEUTENANT
HM Leadership Concepts / The Heat of Command Podcast
Buck Showalter
FORMER MLB MANAGER, ESPN ANALYST, SPEAKER
NY Yankees, AZ Diamondbacks, TX Rangers, Baltimore Orioles, NY Mets
2026 Breakout Session speakers
Keith Hopkins
FIRE CHIEF
Mesquite FD
Why Would Anyone Want To Be Led By You?
Digital Designer
Terence Sheehy
OPERATIONS DEPUTY CHIEF
Dare County EMS
Scattered, Smothered, and Covered: Leadership Lessons from the House That Never Close
Samson “Mufasa” DeSessa
FIRE CHIEF
Naval Air Station Fort Worth Fire & Emergency Services
Did I Stutter?!
Thomas Cruz
CAPTAIN
Corpus Christi FD
Me to We: How to Build Successful Relationships
Daniel DeYear
DEPUTY CHIEF
Dallas Fire Rescue (Ret.)
Cultural Responsibility! Leadership strategies from the top and the bottom
Dr. Candace Ashby
BATTALION CHIEF
Indianapolis Fire Department
Cultural Responsibility! Leadership strategies from the top and the bottom
Digital Designer
Ray Ivie
DIRECTOR
TEEX Research Program
Leadership = Relationship
Ben Suttey
FIREFIGHTER/PARAMEDIC
U.S. Army Reserve
Becoming a Better Leader. A Followers Perspective.
Jamie Howarth
BATTALION CHIEF
Anne Arundel Co. (MD) Fire Department
From the Field to the Firehouse: Honing Your Frame of Reference
Robert Howarth
BATTALION CHIEF (RET.)
Anne Arundel Co. (MD) Fire Department
From the Field to the Firehouse: Honing Your Frame of Reference
Joseph Brace
DISTRICT CHIEF
Houston Fire Department
Leadership is a Choice
Walter Lewis
DEPUTY CHIEF
Orlando International Airport Fire Rescue
What Leadership Isn’t
Adam Gallager
EMS CHIEF
Robertson County Emergency Services District
Code Leadership: It’s Not Just For Cardiac Arrest
Battalion Chief
Kelly Walsh
PROFESSIONAL CERTIFIED COACH
Brave Fire Leaders Academy
Workplace Civility in a Polarized World
Brian Brauer
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
But, we’ve ALWAYS done it this way!!” – Planning and Leading Change in Emergency Services Organizations.
Drew Gonzalez
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR AND DIRECTOR OF OCCUPATIONAL, PERFORMANCE & NUTRITION LAB
SHSU
Fueling the Front Line: Nutrition Strategies to Enhance Firefighter Performance, Cognition, and Readines
Mike Clements
ASSISTANT CHIEF
Cy-Fair Fire Department
From Reaction to Reason: Tactics for Developing Critical Thinking in Fire Service Teams
Digital Designer
Mike McCall, JD
FOUNDER
Protection For All Consulting
Preventing Personnel Problems and Litigation: Your Personal and Professional Reputation on the Line
Tim Gibson
DIVISION CHIEF, TRAINING
Northwest VFD
Make it, or Break it: the Impact of Ethical Leadership
James Horton
DEPUTY FIRE CHIEF
City of Fort Worth Fire Department
Financial Leadership: How do we show the public they are getting the best value for the dollars we spend?
Digital Designer
Benjamin Martin
EXECUTIVE OFFICER/ACTING BATTALION CHIEF
Henrico County Division of Fire, VA
FOUNDER
EmbraceTheResistance.com
Intoxicated Leadership: Are you thinking strategically or reacting emotionally?
Matt Aalto
BATTALION CHIEF – TRAINING OFFICER AND RRC
Estacada Fire District, OR
Expectations and Accountability
Ross Dyer
BATTALION CHIEF/PARAMEDIC
Longview Fire Department
The Night Everything Mattered: Lessons from a Three-Victim Rescue
Digital Designer
Kasey Salway
TRAINING MANAGER
TEEX
Close your eyes and pretend to be dead: Lessons learned about leadership during an international terror attack.
Melanie Nichols
SPEAKER, WORKSHOP FACILITATOR
It’s Okay Not to Be Okay: Toxic Positivity & Emergency Responders
Yvonne Garcia
RESILIENCY DIRECTOR
Bexar County Emergency Services District 7
The Missing Link in Emergency Services Wellness: Building Strength from the Inside Out
Jeffery King
DEPUTY CHIEF
Spring Fire Department
Building Character Through Professional Development
Digital Designer
Colby Rich
CAPTAIN/PARAMEDIC
Sherman Fire-Rescue
Leading the “Unleadable“
Jason Corthell
DIVISION CHIEF OF TRAINING AND WELLNESS
Cypress Creek Fire Department
CEO
Ironclad Wellness
SHIFT: Perspectives From the Frontlines
Matt Caward
DIVISION CHIEF OF OPS/TRAINING
Red Green Blue Firehouse Leadership
Grand Island Fire Department
The Red-Green-Blue Leadership Program: A Framework for Transformational Leadership in Emergency Services
Digital Designer
Tony Ray
CO-OWNER / FACILITATOR
Experiential Development Resources, LLC
CAPTAIN
College Station Fire Department
INSTRUCTOR/COORDINATOR
TEEX
Spark Connections
Ryan Snow
POLICE OFFICER, DRUG RECOGNITION EXPERT, EDUCATOR
But, we’ve ALWAYS done it this way!!” – Planning and Leading Change in Emergency Services Organizations.
Shawn McKerry
DEAN, EMERGENCY TRAINING CENTRE
Lakeland College Emergency Training Centre
Built to Withstand Fire — But Not the Silence. Why Fire Service MH Needs Its Own Playbook.
Digital Designer