May 2026
Message from the Chapters Team
Dear Chapter Officers,
May is for Membership!
We’re excited to see the many Membership initiatives that our 70 chapters have planned for the year. In fact, over 60% of our total NKBA Initiative Grant applications were exclusively for Membership events and programs. Cheers to our chapters for driving interest in joining NKBA!
Regarding our NKBA Initiative Grants, we were thrilled to have 100% of our chapters apply for a grant – a record year. The Chapters team looks forward to working with you and to hearing more about these events in the coming months.
For our upcoming May Chapter Officer monthly Zoom meetings, we have our NKBA Membership team sharing insights and updates. Be sure to join us May 5 (Presidents); May 12 (Programs and Communications); and May 13 (Membership and Secretary/Treasurers).
This month in Chapters, bring your “A” game to Alaska’s 8th Annual NKBA Trivia Night or take a ride with Chicago Mid West on their Kohler Field Trip 2026. Another great bus trip is in store for the New York Tri State Chapter as they venture to NYC for showroom tours at the A&D Building and celebrate Cinco de Mayo in the City. Eastern Carolina presents ways to boost your profits and build your business with a CEU workshop, Practical Tools to Increase Profitability, and Susquehanna Valley drives new membership through a May Membership Event.
Check out your fellow Chapters in our recent features, including LA/MS/AR’s Fashion & Interiors: Common Threads That Shape Our Spaces and Michigan State’s Designing the Business Behind Design.
Our NKBA volunteer leaders impact their communities beyond the K&B industry. Be inspired by Nureed Saaed of Northern California; Doug Walter, AIA, CMKBD of Rocky Mountain; and Tom Knotts of Central Florida.
Drumroll for the NKBA Thirty Under 30 “30s Choice Awards” in a fantastic new format, created by NKBA’s Kristin Shechter and Collin Rooney and produced by Alisha Kidd. See your 30s in action in this awards program sponsored by Fabuwood and Kohler.
And speaking of spotlights, make sure to register for NKBA May Webinars, which are all about lighting, with this month’s programs generously sponsored by Artika Pro.
Cheers to a successful, memorable May!
Warmest wishes,
Kelly
Kelly Buchsbaum
Director, Chapters & Professional Development
