Ponca City Hosts 2026 Oklahoma Chamber Executives Conference

Ponca City is about to have a very important audience!

From Oct. 19-21, chamber executives and professionals from across Oklahoma will gather in Ponca City for the 2026 Oklahoma Chamber of Commerce Executives Annual Conference & Awards Celebration.

When the Ponca City Area Chamber submitted its bid to host this year’s conference, we knew we had an incredible story to tell. We also knew it would take a community effort to make the bid successful, and our community partners showed up!

The City of Ponca City contributed the use of the beautiful, historic Marland Mansion for the OCCE Awards Celebration, while Pioneer Technology Center provided its outstanding Conference Center for the conference. Those in-kind contributions were instrumental in helping us secure the bid. We are also grateful to Visit Ponca City for approving our event sponsorship request and its continued commitment to helping us showcase Ponca City as a destination. As we work to solidify all the details, many others have offered to help sponsor this event. 

Now it is our turn to show Oklahoma why we were so excited to bring this conference home. The conference theme is ENGAGE. EMPOWER. ELEVATE. EXCEL, and attendees will certainly do plenty of all four during three days of professional development, networking and celebration, but we are adding something special to the conference: Ponca City.

Monday afternoon, guests will experience a Ponca City Showcase Tour featuring the Conoco Museum, where Erin Liberton will introduce our guests to the fascinating story of E.W. Marland, the oil industry and the remarkable legacy that continues to shape Ponca City today. Then, they will explore our Sunny Dayz Murals through a Mural Crawl led by City Arts Executive Director Kestrel Tinklenberg. 

That evening, we will gather at The Alley for our “Meet Me at The Alley” Networking Dinner, complete with entertainment, heavy hors d’oeuvres and plenty of opportunities to connect. Mayor Kelsey Wagner will officially welcome our guests to Ponca City. What better way to introduce our visitors to Ponca City than by gathering in one of our popular gathering spaces downtown and with Mayor Wagner’s warm welcome?

On Tuesday evening, we are honored to show off one of our greatest treasures, the Marland Mansion. The OCCE Awards Celebration will be held at Ponca City’s iconic castle, with dinner catered by T.S. Fork. What a spectacular setting to recognize chamber professionals from across Oklahoma for their leadership, innovation, dedication and service.

This Is Bigger Than a Conference, because the real opportunity is what happens after Oct. 21. These chamber professionals are community champions. They influence where people travel, what communities they recommend and where businesses choose to invest. For three days, they will eat local, stay local, explore local and meet our people. We know they will leave talking about Ponca City. The goal is for them to bring their families back and tell their communities about us. 

Sometimes the best way to promote Ponca City is simply to let people experience it for themselves. Oklahoma, come see us and leave with a reason to return