Darby Allen

“I spoke with a number of our attendees, as well as our conference sponsor, and everyone felt Darby’s presentation was perfect for the event, and that his points really resonated with the room.”

“Darby was excellent! While he was speaking you could have heard a pin drop in the room. He was a perfect fit for our conference and the feedback was extremely positive. He was definitely the talk of our networking session later in the day. It hit close to home and pulled on everyone’s heart strings.”

“Darby walked our attendees through the experience of the Fort McMurray devastation and highlighted the importance of truth, transparency, and compassion with your team. Dealing with an emergency doesn’t necessarily sound like the perfect fit for a room of Credit Union managers, however the common themes in our post-conference survey of 185 participants was “inspiring”, “motivational”, and “we can apply this to our work and home life.” Darby’s experience certainly motivated a room full of leaders and we recommend his message to anyone in the business of leadership and teamwork.”

“Darby's speech was about real situations that we can all relate to and his story delivered a great message on how he managed a very large project into smaller events to keep control and focus. Having a proven leader speak was a great change from the norm. Darby Allen provided a refreshing and different insight to leading people during a time of crisis. His presentation was very therapeutic.”

“Our ASA delegates were quite enthralled with Darby’s presentation. So much so, he received a standing ovation! The presentation was silky smooth from an a/v perspective as well. We certainly hope Darby enjoyed presenting at our conference as much as our registrants valued him sharing his extraordinary experiences.”

“[Darby’s] presentation is so heartfelt, he brought some people to tears. He is such a humble, easygoing person, it was a pleasure to bring him in.”

“He had people laughing and crying. Heartfelt and an excellent presenter.”

“Nice to hear from a real hero who made a difference and served people in an emergency. It was a touching and inspiring presentation. Darby is a humble man—he recognizes the contributions of the members of his team. He’s a true leader! Very moving and inspiring from a personal perspective. Made me cry!”

“Chief Darby was a dynamic, engaging speaker for TEDxKelowna. His presentation was one of the highlights of our event, and received very positive feedback from all in attendance. Darby possesses an incredible ability to connect with his audience. He was hands-on, and real. Darby’s presence on stage—and at all activities before and after—was impactful. He is an outstanding presenter.”

“Chief Allen clearly exceeded any expectations we had for a presenter. He truly has a deep love and passion for the fire service and is highly respectful and appreciative for all of those involved during the wildfires. Chief Allen focuses on the positives that happened, the people involved, their leadership and their sacrifices.”

“On behalf of the FCABC, I would like to say a huge thank you for a fantastic closing keynote. He had a full room of very attentive delegates. Please pass on our appreciation to him. It was a pleasure and honour to meet him.”

“Darby was the keynote speaker for our annual safety, health, and wellness recognition and celebration event. It was quite evident through his presentation and demeanor that he is passionate about people and their safety and wellbeing. His story of the Fort McMurray wildfire evacuation, and how the community rallied behind him and each other in the face of extreme peril, was awe inspiring; it is the type of leadership and teamwork any organization would be proud to model.”

“The presentation went very well, and we had a record turnout for the dinner and only positive feedback since. Darby is a very good speaker, and the crowd responded really well to his character and message. He comes across as someone of genuine honesty and great competency who was caught up in a rare moment in history. He assembled a team to do what had to be done under great pressure and stepped into that breach with the calm professionalism and rare leadership needed to achieve great things under trying circumstances. He is Canada’s Captain Sullenburger; a reluctant hero thrust into the limelight and who saved countless lives by making the right decisions at the right time ....”

“The overwhelming comment (almost every single respondent has made) is that ‘Darby Allen was exceptional.’ As I have been studying Canadian Catastrophes since 2014 and never could have imagined the devastation Fort McMurray brought, there was no need for an insurer, forest fire specialist or risk manager to discuss what happened – we wanted the perspective no one but yourself could bring. Your presentation didn’t feel like a media release with flashy pictures, statistics or prepared facts – it was personal, and warm and, as most of us felt, heart-breaking.”