Deb Dulgar and Judy Kelly

Deb Dulgar has been appointed Director, filling an open position on the LWVLL board, and will be filling a new role that has been created, Director of Voter Education. Deb will work with the LWVNE VOTE411 administrator and local League volunteers to gather the Lancaster County candidate information for the VOTE411 voter guide, will help coordinate with other partner organizations on candidate education events (forums, open houses, etc.), help coordinate local ballot issue research and nonpartisan document production for Lancaster County voters, and work with LWVNE on state-wide ballot issue education materials and coordinating Lancaster presentations.

Deb joined the LWV of Lincoln-Lancaster County in May of 2024 and has jumped in with both feet. She is a Lancaster County Deputy Registrar and registered voters at many events over that last year. She was extremely active in collecting signatures to repeal LB1402, the private school voucher bill that was passed by the legislature earlier this year and overturned by the voters in November. She has also served on the Hospitality Committee of the League, helping organize League meetings including the most recent Garden party and mid-year member meeting.  

Deb is a native of Texas but also lived in Colorado and California before moving to Lincoln in 2014. She has been married to Gary for 44 and has two daughters, ages 43 and 40.  She is a busy grandmother of two, ages 10 and 13. Her priority is family, but her interests also include golf, crossword puzzles, other volunteer positions and of course, the League.

Deb was a Legal secretary in Austin and Dallas until their first daughter was born in 1981.  She volunteered extensively after that including as Treasurer, San Diego Rady Children’s Hospital Auxiliary; Deacon Board, Solana Beach (CA) Presbyterian Church, Administrative Assistant, Torrey Pines (CA) H.S. Foundation.  

Her educational background is in Business and she brings excellent computer skills, organizational skills, and public speaking skills to her new position as Director of Voter Education.  

Judy Kelly joined the LWVLL in May of 2023.  She was appointed Vice President of Action and Community Engagement by the board in October. Judy will help cultivate and engage with other community organizations and coalitions that are in alignment with the mission of the LWVLL, will be intimately involved on working on the issues that the LWVLL is supporting and will promote involvement from other League members with those issues (i.e. petition drives, letters to the editor, contacting elected representatives, etc.). She will also lead Program Planning for LWVLL (Reviewing local positions, updating positions as needed and will be involved in any new studies).

A native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Judy moved to Lincoln in 2021 after a pandemic-related realization that she wanted to be closer to family. Her sister, nephew, and their families live in Clay County; Lincoln is the closest metro area for city-lover Judy.

Judy spent her four-plus decade career in strategic communications. Immediately prior to moving to Nebraska, she was the principal of Judith Kelly + Associates, a Pittsburgh-based marketing communications boutique that served predominantly nonprofit clients until its closure in 2020.

Before that, Judy worked at Pittsburgh-based advertising agencies and served as national director of promotion marketing for Pizza Hut (Wichita, Kansas), then a division of PepsiCo. She was vice president, marketing for Ground Round restaurants (Boston) and worked with book publishers and individual authors in marketing their books while based in Chicago. 

In the early 1990’s Judy served as a campaign director for a successful mayoral campaign, and subsequently joined the City of Pittsburgh mayor’s senior staff as assistant to the mayor/director of communications, culture, and tourism.

Judy has been an avid champion of issues related to social justice and the arts throughout her adult life. In addition to her role as vice president of action and community engagement for the League of Women Voters, Lincoln/Lancaster County, she volunteers with the NAACP Lincoln Branch, is co-chair of the OLLI Diversity Committee, serves as a volunteer school docent at the Sheldon Museum, and is an active member of the Unitarian Church of Lincoln, particularly related to climate justice. 

Interested in volunteering? Contact us.

Deb Dulgar

Judy Kelly