Meet the team

Helen was born in Los Angeles and was the youngest of six children. She has made San Diego her home for the past 25 years. She is bringing the future program a combined 27 years of experience working with those in recovery and those with special needs. She has first-hand experience with someone who is perceived differently. Helen's second daughter was born with Autism. 

Throughout the years, Helen has dedicated her time and energy to changing how the world perceives disabilities. But in her free time, Helen enjoys spending time with family and friends and long-distance running. Her love for the disabled translated itself in the classroom where she worked as a para-educator in an award-winning school district in San Diego County. 

A change in career path brought her to the San Diego Sheriff's Department, where she worked with men and women who struggled with addiction. She developed a strong need to help those suffering from substance abuse as she worked with incarcerated people, which helped her realize the potential strengths and talents of those struggling with addiction. Love and Rehab were born with her combined interest and dedication to assisting others to learn to accept one another.

"Our time here is not to judge those for their wrongdoings but to help them become better versions of themselves" 

In 2013, Debbie started with the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department as a 911 dispatcher. She knew from her first ride-along she would be a deputy. After working at the Communication Center for over a year, Debbie applied as a Deputy Sheriff. Upon graduation, she was assigned to Las Colinas Detention and Re-entry Facility, where she worked for approximately two and a half years in the Administrative Segregation Unit, where she frequently worked with high-level and psychiatric inmates.

After Las Colinas, Debbie was assigned to the Lemon Grove Substation as a patrol deputy. She was

honored to serve the diverse community of Lemon Grove with compassion and equality. She 

became a Training Officer and a Corporal at the Lemon Grove station. Her responsibility was to

respond to psychiatric emergencies in the City of Lemon Grove and throughout the county. 

In April 2020, Debbie was promoted to Area Detective at the Poway Sheriff’s Station, where she investigated various crimes as a Detective. She is passionate about helping people and fulfilling her purpose of assisting community members who might not possess the tools to advocate for themselves. In her spare time, Debbie enjoys spending time with her family and friends, and you can most certainly find her in a hot yoga class. She also loves to explore the beautiful outdoors of San Diego and travel back to her home state, Colorado.

Mia Faulk is an award-winning teacher who transforms and creates educational environments of inclusion and diversity. She brings twenty-six years of dynamic and reflective practices in teaching and encouraging young adults to find their voice through writing at the secondary and collegiate levels. In addition to empowering students and staff, Mia’s forte is her ability to address the needs of all when crafting out-of-the-box solutions to complex issues.

A San Diego Area Writing Project Fellow for UCSD, Mia also holds dual master’s degrees in the Art of Teaching and Library and Information Science.

When she isn’t writing or researching, she loves playing the violin in a community orchestra, traveling, and listening to her grandson explains his latest video game.

Sarah Woolley is currently living in San Juan Capistrano, California. She has three beautiful children and is a moderate to severe Special Education teacher in Capistrano Unified School District. 

Sarah also has a multiple-subject K-8 general education credential and a master's in Special Education. From 2007-2013 she received her general and special education credentials in Scotland. 

She is passionate about working with people with Autism and has taught students with Autism from Kindergarten to high school since 2004. In the Poway Unified School District, Sarah opened a middle and high school program for students with special needs. She focuses on positive reinforcement and communication and is passionate about inclusion and supporting families.