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CALCHIEFS ANNUAL CONFERENCE OCTOBER 27-29, 2026 • UNIVERSAL CITY, CA

PRELIMINARY PROGRAM* *Session details are subject to change.

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CALCHIEFS ANNUAL CONFERENCE | OCTOBER 27-29, 2026 | SHERATON UNIVERSAL

*Program subject to change.

Tuesday, October 27, 2026 8:30 AM – 4:00 PM Registration Hours 10:00 – 10:45 AM Opening Ceremony and President’s Welcome President Bernard Molloy II, Fire Chief, Murrieta Fire and Rescue Breakout Sessions: 11:00 – 11:50 AM Beyond Compliance: Rethinking Firefighter Health Jayson Summers, Fire Chief, City of Coronado FD Dr. Tom Carter MD, Longevity Physician Breaking the Fire Service Silos Sarah Montagne, Executive Assistant, Rancho Santa Fe Fire Department and others California Fire Mechanics Academy: Building Expertise to Keep Fire Apparatus Response-Ready Boyd Clegg, Fire Mechanics Academy Taking Friction Loss out of Procurement Crosby Grindle, MPA, EFO President, Cooperative Services 12:00 – 1:00 PM Lunch 1:00 – 3:00 PM CFCA General Membership Meeting and PPA Legislative Update

Breakout Sessions: 3:10 – 4:00 PM The Fundamentals of Leadership - Metro Chiefs Perspective Dan Munsey, Fire Chief, San Bernardino County Fire Protection District Robert Sapien, Fire Chief San Jose Fire Department Billy Alcorn, Fire Chief, Fresno City Fire Department Aaron McAlister, Fire Chief, Contra Costa County Fire Protection District Behavioral Health Is a Workforce Strategy, Not a Benefit David Picone, CEO, Health & Safety Leadership Alliance Technology Fusion for Wildland Firefighting Chuck MacFarland, Aviation Program Manager, San Bernardino County Fire Protection District Chapter 1 Updates President Bernard Molloy II, Fire Chief, Murrieta Fire and Rescue Beyond the Build: The Total Cost of Fire Station Ownership Sean Greenwald, Facilities Management Executive, Kitchell Mark Heine, Retired Fire Chief 4:00 – 6:00 PM Exhibitor and Sponsor Reception

CALCHIEFS ANNUAL CONFERENCE | OCTOBER 27-29, 2026 | SHERATON UNIVERSAL

Wednesday, October 28, 2026

Breakout Sessions: 10:45 – 11:30 AM

7:00 AM – 4:00 PM Registration Hours

Firefighter Annual Physicals -Current Best Practices Kristin Thompson, EMS Division Chief, Newport Beach Fire Department

7:30 – 8:30 AM Breakfast General Session: 8:30 – 9:30 AM Opening Keynote - Semper Fi!: Leadership and Espirt de Corps in the Fire Service William L. Adams, P.C., Attorney at Law Breakout Sessions: 9:45 – 10:30 AM Building a Wildfire Mitigation Program Chris Bachman, Assistant Chief, Contra Costa County Fire Protection District From Chaos to Clarity: How Leadership and Real-Time Information Empower Better Decisions Kevin Fetterman, Senior Vice President of Public Safety Strategy, Watch Duty From Firestorms to Funding: How Sonoma County Built a Voter-Approved Fire Safety Lifeline Steve Akre, Fire Chief, Sonoma Valley Fire District Dana Hampson, Executive Director, Sonoma County Fire Chiefs Association CalChiefs - What Does CalChiefs Do For the Fire Service? President Bernard Molloy II, Fire Chief, Murrieta Fire and Rescue California EMS Revenue: Policy Changes, Funding Risks & Future Opportunities Michael Brook, Senior VP, Client Relations, Digitech

Fire Marshals Executive Leadership Program Justin Gipson, Fire Marshal, Chula Vista Fire James Gillespie, Fire Marshal, Newport Beach Fire Shane Adams, Fire Marshal, Rancho Cucamonga Fire District Do You Know JAC? Yvonne de la Pena, Executive Director, Cal-JAC Todd Braverman, Director of Education and Training, Cal-JAC Matthew McDermott, Business Manager, Firestar Studios 11:45 AM – 1:15 PM Hall of Fame Lunch Breakout Sessions: 1:30 – 2:30 PM Zone 0 Under Fire: Lessons from Berkeley’s Wildfire Risk Reduction Initiative David Sprague, Fire Chief, Berkeley Fire Colin Arnold, Assistant Fire Chief, Berkeley Fire Dave Winnacker, Retired Annuitant Assistant Fire Chief, Berkeley Fire Clear Expectations, Shared Standards: A Practical Approach to Promotional Assessment and Leadership Development Rich Llewellyn, Deputy Fire Chief, Fairfield Fire Department Global Events: Local Level Impacts Jamie Smith, Emergency Manager, San Marcos Fire Department Ray Riorden, Director San Jose Emergency Management Brandy Villanueva, Area G La County Emergency Management Marlon King, Emergency Manager Chula Vista David Laub, Captain Homeland Security LA County Fire Brian Standing, Fire Marshal Coronado Fire CARE Team and Cultural Wellness Michael Bass, Fire Engineer, Victorville Fire Department Alana Negroni, Marriage and Family Therapist, The Counseling Team International

CALCHIEFS ANNUAL CONFERENCE | OCTOBER 27-29, 2026 | SHERATON UNIVERSAL Breakout Sessions: 2:45 – 3:15 PM Top 10 Labor & Employment Pro Tips for Fire Chiefs Jenica Maldonado, Partner, Hanson Bridgett & General and Special Counsel to Fire Districts Leadership: The Fire Chief versus the Internet – What Are Your Firefighters Hearing? Matt Miranda, Atascadero Fire Department Brad Driscoll, Division Chief, East Fork Fire Protection District Brian Price, Battalion Chief, Fresno Fire Department How to Prioritize Mitigation Dave Winnacker, Retired Annuitant Assistant Fire Chief, Berkeley Fire Todd Tuggle, Retired Chief James Gillespie, Fire Marshal, Murrieta Fire and Rescue Fire Safety Orientation for Battery Energy Storage Systems Josh Adams, Fire Safety Engineering Manager, NextEra Energy Breakout Sessions: 3:30 – 4:15 PM Organizational Diversity and the Role of the Fire Chief Heather Marques, Division Chief, Alameda County Fire Department Public Safety UAS Operations & the Future of Emergency Airspace Matt Dargan, UAS Program Manager, Sacramento Metro Fire Department PPE, Legislation, and PFOS-Free Transition Scott Estrada, Vice President, LION PPE Jeff Foy, LION Category Sales Manager Adrian Parker, Regional Manager, Shur Sales PJ Kurpinsky, President, Shur Sales CONFIRE Lessons Learned Nathan Cooke , Deputy Chief, CONFIRE Mike McCliman, Fire Chief, Rancho Cucamonga Ray Gayk, Retired Fire Chief, Priority On Demand Healthy by Design: Fire Station Planning for Cancer Risk Reduction Bill Johal, Sr. Vice President, Kitchell Steve Dewan, Project Director, Kitchell Mark Heine, Retired Fire Chief

Breakout Sessions: 4:30 – 5:30 PM Beyond the Call: Ibogaine and First Responder Recovery Jim Comisky, South Lake County Fire District Trevor Millar, COO/Co-Founder, Ambio Life Today’s Challenges Shape Tomorrow’s Strategy Bruce Bjorge, Director, Strategic Alliances - Fire/EMS, Lexipol Resilience Beyond Duty: Leadership Lessons Learned the Hard Way Alec Wons, Northwest Account Director and Host of The Chief Exchange Podcast, Ready Rebound Technology Strategic Planning - Turning Vision Into Reality Robert Edson, Owner, Acceleration Strategies 2026 Cal Chiefs Mutual Aid Summit Eric Walder, Fire Chief, Waterloo Morada Rural County Fire Protection District 5:30 – 6:30 PM President’s Reception

CALCHIEFS ANNUAL CONFERENCE | OCTOBER 27-29, 2026 | SHERATON UNIVERSAL

Thursday, October 29, 2026 7:30 – 10:30AM Registration Hours 7:30 – 8:30 AM Breakfast General Sessions: 8:30 – 9:30 AM PP GEMT Update Ted Peterson, Deputy Fire Chief, Southern Marin Fire Protection District 9:30 – 10:20 AM Evidenced Based Fireground Operations Jeff Seaton, IAFF 10:30 – 11:30 AM TBD 11:30 AM Closing Remarks President Steve Akre, Fire Chief, Sonoma Valley Fire District

SPACE IS LIMITED IN 2026!!! The CFCA Annual Conference has experienced remarkable growth, with attendance from both fire chiefs and vendors increasing exponentially. While we have secured larger venues for future years to accommodate this momentum, the 2026 Annual Conference is subject to existing contract capacities. Consequently, both registration and exhibit hall space will be capped. Registration is capped at 425 attendees. We anticipate reaching capacity quickly and encourage early sign-ups to guarantee your participation. Once the 425-attendee cap has been met, CFCA will reopen registration for spots made available due to cancellations on a predetermined schedule that will be posted on the CFCA Annual Conference page.

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