Lt. Michael McLeieer has been in the fire service for over 25 years, is certified Firefighter II, Fire Officer III, Fire Instructor III, public fire and life safety educator, youth firesetter intervention specialist, and has served on fire departments in both Michigan and Massachusetts. He has served as the training and scheduling training coordinator for the Massachusetts Firefighting Academy and was in charge of the statewide youth fire intervention program.  He is a National Fire Academy contract instructor and also serves as a past president of the Massachusetts Institute of Fire Department Instructors, the Michigan State Firemen’s Association, founder of the nonprofit organization E.S.C.A.P.E. Inc (Education Showing Children and Adults Procedures for Evacuations), and launched the statewide public education and alarm installation campaign Keeping Michigan S.A.F.E.™ (Smoke Alarms for Everyone).

As Director of Risk Management for Emergency Services Insurance Program with McNeil & Co, Dave works with emergency service organizations across the US . He is the Past Chief of The Cortlandville Fire Department in Upstate New York and A Fire Commissioner in the Virgil Fire District. Dave serves Cortland County as a Deputy Fire Coordinator and is a Director for the Association of Fire Districts in the State of NY. Dave served as the Foundation Secretary for the NVFC. His experience also includes being Treasurer of several non-profit organizations and a Board Member for the First National Bank of Dryden.  

Mr. Bernard began his public safety career as a volunteer EMT at the age of 15. After serving for the US Navy and the DEA, he became a firefighter/rescuer with the Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service and the Rockville Volunteer Fire Department in Maryland. He is currently serving as the Executive Director of the Montgomery County Volunteer Fire-Rescue Association.

Sheri  Nickel has been a volunteer firefighter for 21 years serving in many different roles including Fire Chief. She is now the first female Administrative Director for the Oklahoma State Firefighter’s Association after being promoted from her role as the Recruitment and Retention Coordinator. Ms. Nickel also serves on the board of the NVFC.

Chief Bucy serves Stevens 1 Fire-Rescue, a rural, combination fire district in Washington, and has been in the fire service for 35 years, including 15 years as a volunteer. Chief Bucy also serves as a logistics officer for a type III incident management team and is regularly deployed to wildland fire incidents across the state.

John F. Long, Jr. has been a firefighter since 1975. Starting his service with the United Fire Company of Montrose, Pennsylvania. He enlisted in the United States Coast Guard in 1978 and served as a Chief Electronics Technician until his retirement in 1998. John is certified as a Fire Officer III, and Fire Instructor III. He has held all of the Line Officers positions and is currently serving as the President of the Ferndale Volunteer Fire Company in Glen Burnie, MD. John started serving as a Fire Chaplain when he was elected to the position with the Anne Arundel County Volunteer Firefighters Association in 2002. In 2003 he was appointed as a Chaplain with the Maryland State Firemen's Association and was elected Chief Chaplain in 2005, a position he currently holds. He was appointed Chaplain with the Anne Arundel County Fire Department in 2006 and is currently serving as Chaplain One for the combination department. He has been a member of the Federation since 2005 and has since completed his Advanced Chaplaincy Certificate and serves as an Instructor. John served as a Deacon with the Lake Shore Baptist Church in Pasadena, MD, and was ordained for service as a Chaplain in 2004. He is married to Mary K. (Kathy) Long since 1979, and they have two boys Daniel (Alissa), and Adam, and two grandchildren.

Dr. Wesley R. Attwood is a Public Health Advisor with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health’s (NIOSH) Public Safety Sector program. The program investigates occupational injury, illness, and fatalities among fire service, wildland firefighting, emergency medical services, law enforcement, and corrections workers. During the pandemic, Dr. Attwood has been assigned to the CDC’s Vaccine Task Force, Essential Workers Team, working directly with public safety sector stakeholders.

Cole Karr is the National Special Districts Coalition’s Federal Advocacy Coordinator, working to develop a national grassroots and federal legislative coalition to advance special districts’ representation in Washington, DC. Cole has been working with special districts since January 2019, when he started as a regional public affairs coordinator for the California Special Districts Association in the Central Valley. Prior, Cole spent six years working for member of the U.S. House of Representatives (from Bakersfield to Southwest Missouri to Washington, DC), and served one year as a legislative assistance in the Missouri State House.

Monte Olsen is the Executive Director for the National Association of Emergency and Fire Officials and is also an honorary life member and a past President of the Missouri Association of Fire Protection Districts.  Monte has been involved with several Missouri fire protection districts as a director, special master and receiver, and district manager.

Tom Merrill is a 37-year fire department veteran and serves with the Snyder Fire Department, which is located in Amherst, New York (first ring suburb of the City of Buffalo). He served 26 years as a department officer including 15 years in the chief officer ranks. He was chief of department from 2007-2012 and currently serves as a Fire Commissioner for the Snyder Fire District. Tom has conducted various fire service presentations throughout the country including FDIC, The National Volunteer Fire Council Training Summit, VCOS and many other national, state and regional conferences. His popular presentation "The Professional Volunteer Fire Department" is based on the series of articles he has written for Fire Engineering regarding developing and maintaining a professional reputation in the volunteer fire service. In addition Tom delivers keynote addresses and other presentations focusing on leadership, officer development, engine company operations and fire service history, heritage and pride.  Tom also hosts a regular podcast sponsored by Fire Engineering titled “The Professional Volunteer Fire Department” and he is employed full time as a fire dispatcher for the Town of Amherst Fire Alarm Office.

Jason Decremer, PhD, is the director of Certification for the Connecticut Commission on Fire Prevention and Control. He is responsible for over 40 levels of national certification testing for approximately 30,000 firefighters statewide. Decremer has been a member of the volunteer fire service for 20 years. He also is an adjunct professor at the University of New Haven and Goodwin University, teaching courses in Homeland Security and Fire Administration. He has taught Recruitment & Retention courses across the nation, most recently as an instructor with the IAFC. He received his PhD in public policy and administration from Walden University and a master’s degree in curriculum design and education from the University of Phoenix. He lives in Southbury, CT with his wife Carina and three children.

Jack became a firefighter and EMS provider in 1972 and eventually served the Paoli (PA) Fire Co. as Deputy Chief. He has also served as a firefighter in Chesterfield County, VA, and as Lt. and Safety Officer for Lionville (PA) Fire-Rescue. Although retired from active emergency response after 23 years of service, Jack serves as the Director of Training for the Emergency Responder Safety Institute (www.respondersafety.com). Jack is a member of the Safety, Health and Survival Section of the International Assoc. of Fire Chiefs (IAFC), the International Society of Fire Service Instructors (ISFSI), and the Fire Department Safety Officers Association (FDSOA). He is a Principal Member of the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Technical Committee for Traffic Incident Management Professional Qualifications which developed NFPA 1091: Standard for Traffic Incident Management Professional Qualifications (2019). In January of 2018 Jack was selected to receive the 2018 Fire Dept. Safety Officers Assoc. (FDSOA) Dave Dodson Lifetime Service Award and in April of 2019 Jack was recognized with an “Excellence in Instruction” Award from the International Society of Fire Service Instructors (ISFSI).

Jack graduated from the Co-Op Program at Drexel University in Philadelphia in 1978 with a B.S. in Business Administration – Management. He is a Certified Safety Professional (CSP), and a Professional Member of The American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE), where he has served as President of the Colonial Virginia Chapter. He is also a Certified Fire Protection Specialist (CFPS). 

Jack is a subject matter expert on roadway incident operations and emergency responder safety and promotes proactive strategies and tactics for protecting emergency workers from being struck by vehicles while working on or near roadways. He is a Technical Member of the National Committee on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (NCUTCD) and currently serves as the Task Group Leader for the Temporary Traffic Control Committee that is responsible for Chapter 6i of the Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD). Jack teaches Traffic Incident Management & Responder Safety Workshops for multi-agency emergency responder groups for the Emergency Responder Safety Institute and he is a Master Instructor for the FHWA SHRP 2 Traffic Incident Management Train-the-Trainer Workshops being taught nationwide.