Dana Wockenfuss
Norfolk, NE
Based in Norfolk, Dana Wockenfuss is an advocate, organizer, and community leader dedicated to advancing equity, family well-being, and access to essential services across Nebraska. She serves as the Marketing Chair of the Philanthropy Council of Northeast Nebraska, where she elevates community initiatives and strengthens community engagement in philanthropy throughout the region.
Dana is a committed policy and systems- change advocate. She currently serves on the DHHS Title V Family Leadership Committee and was a member of First Five Nebraska’s Policy Leadership Academy (Class of 2024–25), where she brought a family-centered lens to early childhood and public policy efforts. She has also partnered with Nebraska Appleseed’s Food & Nutrition Access team, connecting lived-experience expertise to support efforts addressing the loss of SNAP benefits for individuals with specific drug convictions.
Deeply invested in reproductive autonomy and maternal health, Dana is an active participant in statewide efforts to expand birth choice in Nebraska. She also supports Norfolk’s LGBTQIA+ community through her volunteer work with Norfolk Area Pride, contributing her skills in marketing and fundraising.
Dana’s professional background includes work at a behavioral health agency, serving individuals with little or no financial means to access care, alongside an integrated early childhood education center supporting young children with higher behavioral needs and their families.
Across all her roles, Dana is driven by a commitment to advancing food access, strengthening women’s health [particularly prenatal and postpartum], elevating early childhood development and education, and advocating for the well-being and inclusion of the LGBTQIA+ community. She brings a lived-experience perspective, a systems-thinking approach, and a deep belief in equitable opportunities for every Nebraskan.
Dana's Civic Action Plan:
Dana is supporting the work led by the Nebraska Organizing Project to secure funding for a community resource center in Norfolk, Nebraska. The Nebraska Organizing Project is continuing their work in Norfolk to affect positive local change through grassroots community organizing. The goal is to have a community resource center to provide a place for community members to access community resources, build on their own communities, and bridge the gap that has been voiced by both providers and citizens.
Funding is first. In order to get this community resource center off the ground, Norforkers need approval from their board of county commissioners and their city council. If Norfolkers can get both of those groups onboard and approved for the funds, then the process to identify and secure grants will begin!