FSWO Connect: Trade Show, Speaker’s Corner & Networking Night

  • October 22, 2026
  • 5:00pm-10:00pm
  • Hilton Garden Inn -- 1870 Matheson Blvd, Mississauga, ON L4W 0B3

Facilitated by Keynote Speaker: Dena Ali

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FSWO Connect: Trade Show, Speaker’s Corner & Networking Night – Sponsored by: RK Rooney

Keynote Speaker: Dena Ali

Join us Thursday evening to kick off the Symposium with networking, inspiration, and connection. Explore our Trade Show featuring industry vendors, service agencies, and exhibitors showcasing innovative products, services, and resources that support the fire service. Their sponsorship and participation play a key role in helping make this Symposium possible.

Visit the booths, enter to win exciting door prizes, and bid on great items as our Silent Auction officially opens.

The evening includes an inspiring keynote from Dena Ali, Battalion Chief with the Raleigh Fire Department, as she shares her powerful message on resilience, leadership, and supporting one another in the fire service.

START OF SILENT AUCTION

Keynote Speaker: Dena Ali

Dena Ali is a Battalion Chief with the Raleigh (NC) Fire Department. She also serves as the program manager of Behavioral Health for the First Responder Center for Excellence. Ali holds a degree from North Carolina State University and an MPA from the University of North Carolina—Pembroke, where her research focused on firefighter suicide. She is an Executive Fire Officer Program graduate through the National Fire Academy. Throughout her career, she has received several awards, one of the most notable being the NC Office of State Fire Marshal Honor, Courage, and Valor Award. She earned this award for her steadfast efforts to bring awareness to firefighter mental health through her vulnerability. Dena is the author of the Fire Engineering bestselling book Hope out of Darkness ~ A Guide to First Responder Mental Wellness