Most of Deborah’s professional career life was with Dominion Energy.  

 

She started with Dominion in its Corporate Media Relations department at its Richmond, Virginia headquarters.   After relocating she served as the company’s spokesperson for Northern Virginia and later held leadership positions in the company’s Customer Service, Energy Efficiency and Key Accounts departments. In Key Accounts Deborah led the team assigned to the company’s largest government, industrial and commercial customers, including those that comprise the region’s prolific data center market.  She retired from Dominion Energy as its regional policy director for Northern Virginia.  She says a highlight of her Dominion Energy career was to serve as the company’s first chair of its Environmental Justice Working Group.  

 

Before joining Dominion Energy Deborah worked several years in radio and at the ABC television affiliate in the Richmond area, where she reported and anchored morning and evening news and produced and hosted a public affairs show.

 

Deborah has and continues to volunteer in her community and for her alma mater, where she pledged the Iota Alpha Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority.

 

At her Alma mater, Deborah served on the James Madison University Board of Visitors from 1988-1994 and 2015-2023; Vice Rector 2020-2022. 

 

She serves on the Board of Trustees of Joe Gibbs’ Youth for Tomorrow New Life Center, which operates a residential campus for troubled, abandoned or abused youth and also offers community-based mental health services for at-risk youth and their families throughout Northern Virginia and in Richmond.  She served as President of the Board of Trustees from 2024-2025 and as Vice President 2022-2023 and 2026. 

 

She is a board member of the Alexandria Police Foundation and is an emeritus board member of the Dominion Energy Credit Union.  

 

Deborah previously served on several boards throughout the Northern Virginia region including, the Northern Virginia Chamber, Alexandria Chamber (Chair of Valor Awards Committee and VP-Development), Prince William Chamber of Commerce (Chair)  She is a graduate of Lead Virginia, Leadership Alexandria, and the Leadership Center of Arlington (Board Chair). 

 

She volunteers for Black Women United for Action and LifeWaters Ministries, Inc. 

 

 In 2013 Deborah published How Did They Do That?—Career Highlights, Triumphs & Challenges, a culmination of interviews she conducted with successful people who tell their stories of challenge and triumph in their personal lives and careers. In 2019 Deborah published a companion journal to How Did They Do That?  

 

A writer at heart, throughout her professional career, Deborah published over 200 newspaper and magazine articles and commentaries.