Christina "Christy" Gardner

Born: 1982

Country of Birth: USA

Nationality: USA

Ethnicity: White

Long Island University BA Photography 2005; University of Southern Maine Therapeutic Recreation degree 2015; University of the Incarnate Word MA Organizational Leadership 2007

""On July 22, 2006, I was in Asia, working as a military police officer in the Army as part of a peacekeeping mission. Normally I drove a Humvee, but that day I was on foot. I have no memory of how I got injured, but when I woke up in the hospital several days later, I had skull fractures and severe internal injuries. I sustained spinal cord damage that paralyzed my legs below the knees. I could have easily fallen into a coma and died." (womansday.com); "The next year [2008], I got a service dog, a golden retriever named Moxie who is trained to recognize the signs of seizures. If she senses one coming on, she'll grab my wrist and pull me to the ground, then keep her paws on me until the seizure is over. With Moxie, there's no time to wallow. She needs a walk. She needs her food. She needs to be cared for. She's a friend, an assistant, and a motivator." (womansday.com); "The introduction to adaptive sports changed my life and gave me a way to mark my Alive Days. After waterskiing, I tried snow skiing, snowboarding, and surfing for the first time. Now every year on my Alive Day, I do something my doctors told me I'd never do again." (womansday.com); “Service dogs give you so much more independence and save so much of your energy,” Gardner said. “That’s especially true for veterans — most of us don’t like to rely on other people for things.” (downeast.com); "I don’t ever want to be limited by what-ifs. I would rather play and have fun and be successful now and deal with the repercussions later." (downeast.com); "

— Christina "Christy" Gardner

Field of Study: Para-athlete; Dog Trainer

Institution/Corporation: Move United; University of Southern Maine; Mission Working Dogs

Degrees & Memberships: Member: US Women's Sled Hockey Team

Awards: 2013 USA Hockey Disabled Athlete of the Year;

Achievements: opened Mission Working Dogs a non-profit in July 2020 in Oxford, Maine to provide service dogs to other Army vets; has written a few children's books; spearheaded the creation of an adaptive track and field program through Central Maine Adaptive Sports, a non-profit organization that offers adaptive sport opportunities like skiing, snowboarding, sled hockey, track and field and others; 2015 co-founded the New England Warriors sled hockey program, a sister program to the USA Warriors and is designed for the rehabilitation of ill and injured veterans;