Yvette is a retired special agent/police officer, military veteran, educator, and advocate whose career spans nearly four decades of service dedicated to protecting vulnerable populations and supporting survivors of trauma.
Born in Miami, Florida, and raised in both Florida and Colorado, Yvette developed a lifelong appreciation for the outdoors through skiing, camping, and hiking. Following high school, she enlisted in the United States Air Force, serving as a Security Police for four years, including a deployment during Operations Desert Shield/Storm.
Yvette’s law enforcement career began with the Milford Police Department in Delaware before she joined the Wilmington Police Department. There, she served as a detective in the Drug, Vice, and Organized Crime Unit and the Special Victims Unit.
In 2002, Yvette became a United States Postal Inspector, serving on both the Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF) and the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Task Force in Philadelphia. In 2009, she joined Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) as a Special Agent, serving in Wilmington, Delaware, and Charleston, South Carolina. Throughout her federal career, she specialized in victim-centered investigations involving human trafficking and crimes against children. Over the course of 20 years, she became a recognized subject matter expert in child exploitation investigations and spent 14 years investigating human trafficking. Yvette’s expertise led her to provide training and instruction worldwide, including at the International Law Enforcement Academies in Bangkok, Budapest, San Salvador, and Gaborone.
In addition to her investigative work, Yvette earned both undergraduate and graduate degrees from Wilmington University and served as an adjunct professor, teaching undergraduate and graduate criminal justice courses.
After 36 years in law enforcement — including service in the Air Force, local policing, and federal investigations — Yvette retired from Homeland Security Investigations in December 2023. She then served as Director of Law Enforcement Engagement for Sentinel Foundation, where she helped strengthen global partnerships among law enforcement agencies and non-governmental organizations to support child rescue operations, victim identification efforts, and specialized training initiatives.
In 2025, after decades of cumulative direct and vicarious trauma, extensive international travel, and serving as the primary caregiver for a terminally ill parent, Yvette recognized the need to focus on her own healing journey. Seeking renewed purpose and growth, she attended Warrior PATHH at Boulder Crest in July 2025. The experience became a transformative turning point, helping her discover a new sense of purpose grounded in service, growth, and Posttraumatic Growth.
Today, Yvette proudly serves as a PATHH Guide, helping fellow first responders and veterans navigate their own journeys toward healing and growth. She lives in Charleston, South Carolina, with her miniature Australian Shepherd, Saba. In her free time, she enjoys traveling the world, hiking mountain trails, sailing new waters, and continuing her lifelong journey of growth and transformation.
