Deborah Simmons

Deborah Simmons

Founder and Board Member

Deborah is living her dream born in the early 2000’s at West Central Correctional Facility in Marysville, Ohio. While serving men and women there as the Recovery Bible study leader, Counselor and Sunday Service leader, Deborah discovered a calling that just won’t quit and a passion that continues to grow. Her desire to better serve the women led to a second master’s degree – a Master’s in Addiction Counseling to go with her MBA in Organizational Behavior.

Deborah’s past experience has provided the perfect pathway to making The Reentry Initiative a success –- She had a 20-year career in corporate organizational development, the Center for Creative Leadership and as the National Program Director for the American Leadership Forum. There she learned how to join and strengthen leaders to better serve the public good in chapter communities across the country. She was a Founding Director for Gracehaven, a shelter for sexually trafficked girls. She was Board Chair for a community mental health center in Dublin, Ohio.

Shortly after moving to Longmont in 2011, she became a FOCUS mentor, then Trustee for Community Foundation of Boulder County and Trustee for El Paso: Engaged Latino Parents Achieving Student Outcomes. Through her board work, program leadership in the Boulder County Jail and participation in Leadership Boulder and Leadership Longmont, Deborah has developed a comprehensive network of personal and professional contacts with key Boulder County community and government leaders. She values these relationships and shares a growing commitment to serving the homeless, working with faith communities and other leaders in Longmont.