Karen (Gilmore) Doerr graduated from Hastings College in 1975 with a degree in political science. Community involvement has been an important part of her life since she moved back to Hastings in 1979. Her career has taken her from marketing for the Imperial Mall, to admissions and alumni work for Hastings College, to public relations for Mary Lanning Healthcare and to fundraising for the Hastings Museum. For 13 years she worked for the Good Samaritan Society – Hastings Village in both marketing and fundraising.
In 2018, she was named Executive Director for Leadership Hastings, acting as liaison between the 25 class members and the 19-member board and helping direct the monthly class sessions.
An active volunteer, Doerr has been involved with projects for the Hastings Community Theater, Hastings Symphony, First Presbyterian Church, Y.W.C.A, and Heartland Pet Connection. In addition to the Hastings College Foundation, she serves on the boards of Senior Action, Hastings Community Foundation, and Nebraska Presbyterian Foundation.
She and her husband Roger Doerr, professor emeritus of business at Hastings College and past president of the Hastings College Foundation, live in Hastings.