Northeastern Kansas Beekeepers Association

Category: Local clubs Also called: NEKBA; Northeastern Kansas Beekeepers; NE Kansas Beekeepers Association; nekba.org Last checked: 2026-09-28

What it is

The Northeastern Kansas Beekeepers Association (NEKBA) is a first-party local beekeeping club in northeastern Kansas, whose dated 2026 events are held in Lawrence and Olathe. Its official site (nekba.org) publishes monthly-meeting cards, membership dues, open-apiary teaching sessions, a beginning beekeeping class, the annual Bee Funday, youth and military/veteran scholarships, and the monthly “Bee Buzzer” newsletter. Official About copy says the association “was founded in 1948 to serve the needs of beekeepers with the object of advancing the education of the public in Apiculture,” and describes it as a Not-for-Profit IRC 501(c)5 (agricultural-educational) organization, run by dedicated volunteers, and supported primarily by membership subscriptions. It is not a commercial hive-equipment shop and not a university certificate pathway.

Who it’s for

New and experienced hobby beekeepers in northeastern Kansas who want free, open monthly evening meetings at the Douglas County Fairgrounds in Lawrence, hands-on open-apiary sessions at a club teaching bee yard, mentoring, and a monthly newsletter, all for printed first-party dues of $25 per year (youth $12.50). Monthly meeting cards read “Free to all. Bring a friend.” Families can add a household member for $1. Not a drop-in equipment warehouse and not a university certification course.

Why it’s listed

This is a first-party Local club with dated 2026 monthly-meeting cards at a named Lawrence venue with a street address, dollar dues on the official Membership page, a dated 2026 beginner-class agenda, a club teaching apiary with a printed location, and a 75-plus-year founding history. It is not a Facebook-only group and not a scraped directory card.

• Meeting schedule & venue (Events page + event detail, checked 2026-09-28): monthly general meetings are held at the Douglas County Fairgrounds, 2110 Harper Street, Lawrence, KS, 7:00–8:00 p.m. The most recent dated cards on the check date were NEKBA Monthly Meeting, Monday, August 17, 2026 and NEKBA Monthly Meeting, Monday, September 21, 2026 (topic “TBA”; “Free to all. Bring a friend. Watch for the monthly ‘Buzzer’ newsletter.”). The July slot was the Summer Celebration Picnic, Monday, July 20, 2026, at Baker University Wetlands (with a from-scratch pie bake-off). The site does not print a fixed cadence rule, but the dated 2026 meeting cards fall on the third Monday. No October 2026 card was posted on the check date. The Bee Buzzer newsletter page says the newsletter “is how we announce our meetings, topics, locations.”
• Membership dues (NEKBA Membership page, checked 2026-09-28): NEKBA Membership $25.00 one-time (expires at the end of 2026); NEKBA Membership Subscription $25.00 every year (a full 12 months from signup); NEKBA Youth Membership $12.50 (expires at the end of 2026); Family Member Add-On $1.00 (must share the primary member’s mailing address). Listed benefits include monthly meetings and networking, the Bee Buzzer newsletter, educational programs, and local beekeeping support. Official copy says dues cover “meeting room rental, insurance, newsletter, and postage,” and that emailing the newsletter as a PDF saves “over $2,400 annually.”
• Education & programs (Open Apiary, Events, Scholarship, and Bee Funday pages, checked 2026-09-28): the club’s teaching apiary at Pendleton’s Country Market, 1446 E 1850 Rd., Lawrence, KS opened in April 2023 with grant funding from the Great Plains Master Beekeeping program. Sessions run weekly in April and at least twice a month in other active months. Bring your own protective gear, and do not bring hive tools or smokers (disease prevention). A Beginning Beekeeping Class ran Saturday, March 21, 2026, 8:30 a.m.–4:30 p.m. at the Johnson County Extension Office, 11811 S Sunset Dr, Olathe, KS 66061, with a printed agenda covering equipment, biology, a year in the bee yard, mites and diseases, and extracting. Bee Funday 2026 (Saturday, June 6, Douglas County Fairgrounds) drew about 250 people, and Funday 2027 details are “stay tuned.” The NEKBA Youth Scholarship (fund established 2003) is taking 2027 applications due October 31, 2026 (emailed or postmarked, one per family). A separate Military/Veteran’s Apprentice Program is also listed. Members were also invited to volunteer at the Kansas Honey Producers booth at the 2026 Kansas State Fair.
• Contact / hub: official site https://www.nekba.org/. The Contact page prints a message form and NEKBA Treasurer Robert Burns, 7601 W 54th Terr, Overland Park, KS 66202, [email protected]. The officer roster sits behind the members-only login. No purchase or outreach was made from Beekeeping Plaza.

Meeting dates, venues, dues, class dates, and scholarship deadlines above are what the official pages showed on the check date. They can change. Confirm the live Events and Membership pages before treating any date, venue, or fee as fixed.

Official URL

https://www.nekba.org/

About NEKBA (1948, 501(c)(5)): https://www.nekba.org/about-nekba

Events: https://www.nekba.org/nekba-events

NEKBA Monthly Meeting, Sept 21, 2026 (Douglas County Fairgrounds): https://www.nekba.org/nekba-events/49y5a5do2uuq7hpljwxtzc4ozgqmxv-cbg6f-3a2lm-scem3-kw697

Beginning Beekeeping Class, Mar 21, 2026 (Olathe): https://www.nekba.org/nekba-events/beginning-beekeeping-class-march21

Join NEKBA ($25/year): https://www.nekba.org/nekba-membership

Open Apiary Classes: https://www.nekba.org/open-apiary

Bee Funday: https://www.nekba.org/bee-funday

Scholarships (Youth & Military/Veteran): https://www.nekba.org/scholarship

Bee Buzzer newsletter: https://www.nekba.org/bee-buzzer-newsletter

Contact: https://www.nekba.org/contact-us

Location

Primary meeting venue named on the official event pages (checked 2026-09-28): Douglas County Fairgrounds, 2110 Harper Street, Lawrence, KS, 7:00 p.m. on the dated 2026 cards (Mon Aug 17, Mon Sept 21). The club teaching apiary is at Pendleton’s Country Market, 1446 E 1850 Rd., Lawrence, KS, about 5 minutes from the fairgrounds. The 2026 beginning class met at the Johnson County Extension Office, 11811 S Sunset Dr, Olathe, KS 66061. The treasurer’s mailing address is 7601 W 54th Terr, Overland Park, KS 66202. Check the live Events page before you go.

This is a Local club meeting address, not a Beeline Woodenware retail counter and not a university extension classroom.

Notes

• Category is Local clubs. NEKBA is a first-party northeastern Kansas beekeeping association with a printed meeting venue, dated 2026 meeting cards, and annual dues. It is not Equipment, and it is not Learning in the university-pathway sense: the club hosts a Great Plains Master Beekeeping–funded teaching apiary and a beginner class, but NEKBA itself is the membership club. It is distinct from the clubs already listed (Collin County, Back Yard, Alamo Area, Central Ohio, Metro Atlanta, Puget Sound, Tri-County, Cabarrus County, Minnesota Hobby).
• The $25 / $25-per-year / $12.50 youth / $1 family dues, the Douglas County Fairgrounds venue and Aug 17 / Sept 21, 2026 cards, the July 20 picnic, the Pendleton’s teaching apiary (April 2023, GPMB grant), the Mar 21, 2026 Olathe class, the June 6 Funday (~250 attendees), the Oct 31, 2026 youth-scholarship deadline, the 1948 / 501(c)(5) copy, and the treasurer contact are transcribed from official nekba.org pages checked on 2026-09-28 and may change. The Events page had not yet posted an October 2026 meeting on the check date. The Open Apiary page also lists a member-hosted monthly open apiary in Spring Hill, KS and a Shawnee County beginner series. Contact details for those are on the live page.
• First-party logo saved beside this listing as northeastern-kansas-beekeepers.png (from the official nekba.org header asset NEKBA_logo3.png on Squarespace CDN, unedited).
• Not affiliated with Beekeeping Plaza.
• No Beekeeping Plaza contact, purchase, booking, or publication action was taken.

FAQ

Q: When and where does NEKBA meet?
A: Official Events page (checked 2026-09-28): monthly general meetings take place at the Douglas County Fairgrounds, 2110 Harper Street, Lawrence, KS, 7:00–8:00 p.m. The latest dated 2026 cards were Monday Aug 17 and Monday Sept 21 (both third Mondays), and meetings are “Free to all. Bring a friend.” No October card was posted on the check date. Watch https://www.nekba.org/nekba-events or the Bee Buzzer newsletter before you travel.

Q: What are the dues?
A: Official Membership page (checked 2026-09-28): $25 for a membership that expires at the end of 2026, or a $25/year subscription running 12 months from signup; youth membership $12.50; family member add-on $1 (same mailing address). Dues cover meeting room rental, insurance, the newsletter, and postage. Confirm the live page before paying.

Q: Is this an equipment shop or a university course?
A: No. NEKBA is listed here as Local clubs: a volunteer-run, member-supported 501(c)(5) beekeeping association in northeastern Kansas with monthly meetings, open-apiary sessions, a beginner class, scholarships, and a newsletter. For hive gear see Equipment listings (e.g. Beeline Woodenware, HillCo). For a university class pathway see Learning (e.g. Tennessee Master Beekeeping Program, Purdue Queen Rearing Short Course).