The Kansas State Association of Fire Chiefs will hold its 110th Annual Conference October 28–30, 2026, at Margaritaville Kansas City in Kansas City, Kansas. The program is built for Kansas fire-service leaders, administrative staff, affiliated agencies and registered vendors, with a roundtable, keynote sessions, an awards luncheon, a vendor trade show and association business.
This guide summarizes the organizer’s current public information so participants can decide which days apply to them and what to confirm before traveling. It is not a substitute for registration materials or direct instructions from KSAFC. Details can change, so check the official 2026 conference page again before leaving.
At a glance
- Dates: Wednesday, October 28 through Friday, October 30, 2026
- Location: Margaritaville Kansas City, 1491 N. 98th Terrace, Kansas City, KS 66111
- Best for: Kansas fire chiefs, officers, administrative staff, affiliated fire-service professionals and registered vendors
- General conference price: The organizer currently lists $200 for Thursday and Friday attendance
- Wednesday roundtable: Listed as free, with registration encouraged
- Vendor trade show: Thursday, October 29, 7 a.m.–5 p.m. on the attendee schedule; the vendor registration page lists vendor activity through 7 p.m. because Vendor Night runs 5–7 p.m.
- Registration: Use the attendee-registration link on the official conference page; vendor space is sold out
Choose the days that fit your role
Wednesday is the focused working day. KSAFC lists the Chief’s Roundtable from 9 a.m.–4 p.m. and says it is free with registration encouraged. A Fire Marshals Association of Kansas meeting is scheduled from 10 a.m.–noon, and a fire-department administrative-assistant forum runs from 10 a.m.–4 p.m. The official page also lists open networking at the hotel lobby bar Tuesday evening and again Wednesday evening. Confirm whether a meeting requires separate registration before assuming the main conference registration covers it.
Thursday is the busiest conference and exhibit day. Registration opens at 7 a.m., alongside the vendor trade show. The formal welcome begins at 8 a.m., followed by a memorial service and industry reports. Dr. David Griffin’s keynote, “In Honor of The Charleston 9,” is presented in morning and afternoon blocks, with scheduled vendor breaks between sessions. The awards ceremony and luncheon run from noon–1:30 p.m. KSAFC then lists association updates and a SAFER Grant update late in the afternoon, followed by Vendor Night and a barbecue from 5–7 p.m.
Friday shifts away from the exhibit hall and toward leadership, communication and association business. Fire Marshal Mark Engholm is scheduled from 8–10 a.m. for a fire-service leadership keynote. Dave Carroll’s session on creating a storytelling culture follows from 10 a.m.–noon. Lunch and networking are scheduled from noon–1 p.m., and the business meeting runs from 1–4 p.m. before conference closing.
Registration, meals and schedule questions
The public conference page says the $200 Thursday-and-Friday registration includes all programming, including the awards luncheon, keynote speakers, business meeting and vendor expo. It also says Wednesday-session participants are invited to the Thursday awards luncheon and should note dietary restrictions during registration under “Special Accommodations.” Because that wording could affect meal counts, Wednesday-only participants should confirm the luncheon process with KSAFC instead of arriving without a recorded registration.
The organizer’s current refund policy says cancellations before the first conference day will be refunded in full upon request, while later cancellations and no-shows will not be refunded. Review the actual registration form at checkout in case terms change.
A vendor-focused Thursday plan
Registered vendors should treat Wednesday evening as setup time and Thursday as the full customer-facing day. The vendor page schedules setup Wednesday from 4–8 p.m. and the trade show Thursday from 7 a.m.–7 p.m., including Vendor Night from 5–7 p.m. Breakdown is listed for Thursday evening after the barbecue or Friday morning.
KSAFC says it is planning a vendor punch card to encourage attendee visits. Vendors that want their organization included are asked to provide a drawing item and notify Courtney Fegter by October 17. The public page labels that date “Friday,” but October 17, 2026 falls on Saturday. Use October 17 as the planning date and ask KSAFC to confirm the intended cutoff rather than relying on the weekday label.
The official vendor page also publishes shipping instructions: packages go to the hotel front desk, are stored in the Convention Catering Office, and should identify the guest and KSAFC Conference. The guest is responsible for scheduling outbound pickup and supplying a shipping label. Those instructions may not cover every carrier, package size, storage condition or deadline, so confirm the current process with the organizer or hotel before shipping valuable or time-sensitive materials.
Before you leave home
Participants can avoid most last-minute friction with a short check:
- Save the latest conference schedule and your registration confirmation.
- Confirm which Wednesday meeting, Thursday meal and Friday session your registration includes.
- Ask KSAFC about dietary or other requested accommodations early; do not assume a hotel feature or service that the organizer has not confirmed.
- Verify the hotel address in navigation: 1491 N. 98th Terrace, Kansas City, Kansas 66111.
- Check the hotel directly for parking, accessible routes, check-in, resort fees and room-block terms. The conference page’s hotel-booking note says the displayed group rate includes the resort fee and resort-fee taxes but not room-rate taxes.
- Vendors should carry digital copies of current booth artwork, product disclosures and shipping tracking details, and should test every displayed QR code on a phone before setup.
Contact and fact-check notes
The KSAFC site identifies Courtney Fegter as executive director and publishes ksafc1@gmail.com and (785) 600-0977. A separate vendor-registration page shows a different phone number later in its text. For general conference questions, use the email or the contact details on KSAFC’s main site and ask which number is current.
The event page does not currently publish dependable details about parking availability, pet policies or a complete accessibility route. Do not infer those details. Contact the hotel and organizer for your specific needs, especially if you need mobility access, service-animal guidance, a quiet space or another accommodation.
For organizations preparing conference materials
Bring only current, approved claims and give each piece one job: explain, compare or prompt a follow-up. If your team still needs local production, 2 Friends Printing has a restrained conference vendor printing guide covering banners, company literature, specification sheets, promotional products and QR cards. 2 Friends Printing is an independent printer and is not affiliated with or endorsed by KSAFC, the conference or Margaritaville Kansas City.
Event details can change. Recheck the official KSAFC conference page and your registration materials immediately before attending.
