The 2025 Sky Fire Summit proudly presents an exceptional lineup of renowned speakers for captivating presentations, dynamic discussions, and engaging activities. Join us for an inspiring experience of knowledge, innovation, and collaboration!
Donald R. Schmitt
Donald R. Schmitt is a seven-time best-selling investigative author and the former co-director of the J. Allen Hynek Center for UFO Studies in Chicago, where he served as Director of Special Investigations for ten years. He worked as a special investigator for the late Dr. J. Allen Hynek and held the role of art director for the International UFO Reporter. Schmitt graduated cum laude from Concordia University. He is renowned for his work on the Roswell Crash, with his debut book being UFO Crash at Roswell in 1991. Notably, his 2017 book, Cover-Up at Roswell: Exposing the 70-Year Conspiracy to Suppress the Truth garnered significant attention.
Schmitt has appeared on numerous prominent platforms, including Oprah, CBS 48 Hours, Larry King Live, CNN, and Coast to Coast with George Noory. He led and organized five archaeological dig projects at the Roswell crash/debris field in 1989, 2002, 2006, 2013, and 2016. The second dig became the central theme of Syfy Channel’s highest-rated show, “The Roswell Crash: Startling New Evidence.” His research and consultation have inspired documentaries; he considers his greatest achievement to be the Golden Globe Best Picture-nominated motion picture Roswell, based on his first book. Schmitt is a contributing writer for UFO Magazine and is an International UFO Research Museum board member.
David Hatcher Childress
David Hatcher Childress, often referred to as the real-life Indiana Jones, is a captivating speaker and the author or coauthor of over 25 books. His extensive travels around the world are driven by his quest to uncover the mysteries of mankind’s past. Born in France in 1957 and raised in the mountains of Colorado and Montana, Childress studied oriental culture and philosophy at the University of Montana. In 1976, after teaching English in Taiwan, he embarked on a six-year research and adventure journey.
By 1984, he had authored two books about his journeys: Lost Cities of Africa and Arabia and Lost Cities of China, Central Asia, and India. His expeditions to South America in the 1980s led to the publication of Lost Cities and Ancient Mysteries of South America, becoming a top-ten seller in Brazil. His global research continued with a series of books including Lost Cities of Ancient Lemuria & the Pacific, Lost Cities of North and Central America, Lost Cities of Atlantis, Ancient Europe & the Mediterranean, and The Mystery of the Crystal Skulls.
Childress is recognized as an expert on ancient civilizations and technology, as well as free energy, anti-gravity, and UFOs. With over 30 years of investigation, his knowledge and expertise are in high demand. He has appeared on Fox-TV’s Sightings and Encounters, two NBC-TV specials, The Conspiracy Zone, and segments for the Discovery Channel, A&E, The Syfy Channel, The History Channel, and The Travel Channel. He is currently a co-star on the History Channel’s show Ancient Aliens, now in its nineteenth season. Additionally, he appeared in the Canadian television show Weird or What? hosted by William Shatner.
A frequent guest on nationally syndicated radio shows, David continues to inspire curiosity and discovery through his magazine, World Explorer, and his publishing company, Adventures Unlimited Press.
Melinda Leslie
Melinda Leslie is the owner of UFO Sighting Tours in Sedona, Arizona, where she has conducted over 1,920 tours with the use of military night vision goggles. She is considered by many to be the authority on military and intelligence agency involvement in UFO/extraterrestrial abduction cases. She was pivotal in organizing a UFO lectures series in Los Angles for 20 years, hosting top researchers in the field of UFO research.
She is also a UFO abductee and has been public with both her own extraterrestrial and covert-ops human abduction experiences. Her extensive abduction research and personal experiences have been featured in over 30 books by prominent authors in ufology. Melinda has investigated in the UFO field for over 35 years and has worked closely with individuals involved in its "cover-up" for 32 years.
To book a tour with Melinda visit: www.UFOSightingTours.com
Ron James
Ron James is a multifaceted filmmaker, on-camera personality, writer, editor, researcher, content creator, and entrepreneur. Serving as the director of media relations for MUFON, he is also the co-founder of MUFON Television, an online TV channel renowned for housing the world's largest collection of commercial-free UAP-related content.
His documentary, Accidental Truth, is set to screen on Friday night to kick off the 2025 Sky Fire Summit Conference. This fast-paced and up-to-date film immerses viewers in some of the most significant UFO events ever recorded, exploring both well-known historical incidents and lesser-known crash retrievals, such as the 1941 Cape Girardeau, Missouri event—six years before the famous Roswell crash.
Accidental Truth features in-depth interviews with prominent figures like Chris Mellon, Lue Elizondo, Dr. Gary Nolan, Michio Kaku, and others who push for governmental transparency on secret UFO projects and reverse-engineered crashed UFO vehicles. The film delves into the current U.S. congressional UAP hearings, including accounts from "whistleblowers" and insiders like Robert Bigelow, who have held private contracts within the secret legacy programs funded by the military-industrial complex.
Narrated by Matthew Modine, this award-winning documentary runs 90 minutes.
Stacey Wright
Stacey Wright serves as the State Director for Arizona MUFON and the Director of Phoenix MUFON. With 18 years of dedication as a certified Field Investigator and STAR Team member, Stacey has been pivotal in establishing Phoenix MUFON as MUFON International’s first Chapter of The Year.
She has led numerous Roswell archaeological digs alongside Don Schmitt, contributed to the design and production of the Phoenix Lights exhibit for the Arizona Historical Society Museum, and oversaw the revision of MUFON’s State Director Handbook. Stacey also organizes MUFON’s Annual Field Investigator Boot Camp, a comprehensive training weekend in Mesa, AZ, for aspiring UFO event investigators. Additionally, she coordinates the Field Investigator Training at the annual MUFON Symposium.
Stacey's passion lies in unraveling the mysteries of the world, whether they are archaeological, interdimensional, or celestial. With 29 years in the public school system, Stacey has also cherished raising her two wonderful children and four grandchildren. In her spare time, she enjoys kayaking, stargazing, archery, and exploring the scenic beauty of Arizona’s high country.
Jennifer W. Stein
Jennifer W. Stein is acclaimed for her award-winning documentary film that delves into the famed 1975 UFO incident involving Travis Walton. With nearly two decades of activism within the UFO community, she stands as the director and founding member of Main Line MUFON, a community educational service in Pennsylvania. In addition to her role as chapter director of Sedona MUFON, she has penned articles on several topics including UFO phenomena, precognition, synchronicity, crop circles, and the Travis Walton case.
Stein is also the producer of monthly public programming airing on her local public access television station and MUFON TV, a platform she co-established with Ron James. Her presentations at numerous conferences span subjects such as UFOs, crop circles, the Travis Walton story, and ancient architectural sites, including her research on Gobekli Tepe in Turkey, Puma Punku in Bolivia, and the sacred valley of Cuzco, Peru. She has shared her own UFO encounter from 1975 in her talks.
A budding entrepreneur from a young age, Stein honed her business acumen in a family-owned enterprise while earning a B.S. in textiles from the University of Arizona in 1983. She currently resides in Anthem, Arizona.
Travis Walton
Travis Walton, at just the age of a 22-year-old American forestry worker, he encountered a UFO craft with his fellow logging crew members on November 5, 1975, while he was working in the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest near Snowflake, Arizona. During this encounter, Walton was missing for five days and six hours. After five days of searching with scent dogs and helicopters, Walton's coworkers underwent polygraph examinations to determine if they were involved with Travis’s murder and cover-up when no trace of Walton could be found.
After Walton reappeared by the side of a road near Heber, Arizona, Walton’s case received mainstream publicity and remains one of the best-known UFO encounters and alien abduction stories. Naturally, his experience has been the subject of major debunking efforts by famous UFO debunkers like Philip J. Klass for decades. In 1978, Walton wrote a book about his experience titled The Walton Experience, which was adapted into the 1993 Paramount film “Fire in the Sky.”
He later re-issued his book under this same name. Travis has appeared in multiple television specials recounting this case. Paranormal Witness, as have the Travel Channel and SyFy Networks, produced an excellent episode about Travis and his fellow loggers’ experiences in 2011.