NSVFA Board Recommends Bylaw Updates for Membership Consideration

One of the responsibilities your Board of Directors takes seriously is making sure our association's governing documents continue to serve the needs of our members. At our special board meeting in February, we spent a great deal of time reviewing the NSVFA bylaws line by line. Our goal was simple: to make sure they accurately reflect how we operate today while making them easier to read and understand. After that thorough review, the board unanimously approved a series of proposed bylaw changes that were published in the July 2026 issue of the Nebraska Firefighter.

Most of the proposed changes are housekeeping items. We corrected typographical errors, removed repetitive language, and updated wording to improve clarity and consistency. These revisions won't dramatically change how the association operates, but they will help ensure our bylaws remain a clear, accurate, and useful guide for the future.

One of the proposed bylaw changes I'd especially like to highlight though involves our National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) Directors. During our February meeting, the board unanimously voted to recommend a bylaw amendment that would make the NVFC Directors official members of the NSVFA Board of Directors. Our NVFC Directors work hard to represent Nebraska at the national level while bringing valuable information, training opportunities, resources, and advocacy back to our members. Making them official board members recognizes the important role they already play and places them alongside our District Directors as equal members of the board. I believe it's a change that better reflects how our association operates today.

These proposed changes belong to the membership. I encourage each of you to take a few minutes to review them before our October Conference. Your participation in the discussion and the vote is an important part of keeping our association strong and member-driven.

Thank you for your continued support of the Nebraska State Volunteer Firefighters Association. Whether it's attending conferences, serving on committees, volunteering for events, or simply taking the time to vote, your involvement is what makes this association successful. I look forward to seeing many of you at the October Conference as we continue working together to strengthen the NSVFA and support Nebraska's volunteer fire service.

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As always, if you have a meeting or event, you would like me to attend, please reach out and I will make every effort to be there.  Below are the upcoming events you don’t want to miss:

-              NSVFA Fallen Firefighters Memorial Service: September 20, 2026, Kearney, NE at Nebraska Firefighters Museum and Education Center

o   If your department lost a member in 2025, you are invited to submit their name for inclusion in the 2026 NSVFA Fallen Firefighters Memorial Service. To submit a member name, please visit the NSVFA website at https://www.nsvfa.org/memorial-service.  Names need to be submitted by August 31, 2026.

-              2026 Annual Conference: October 15-17, 2026, Hosted by Dakota City Fire Department. The deadline for early registration is September 15th, so take a few minutes today to complete the online registration here: https://www.nsvfa.org/conference.

Until next time, stay safe and healthy.

Brenda Jenny

President, NSVFA