Christine Dayton, Retired Educator

Christine Dayton, a 37-year Southern Arizona resident and retired educator, is Gabrielle Giffords’ Supporter of the Week. Christine was Gabrielle Giffords’ second-grade teacher at Tanque Verde Elementary School. “Gabrielle is our great hope. The issues that she believes in are the issues that I believe in — health care, the environment, and energy independence. Plus Gabrielle has always been a supporter of education. The more you hear her speak, the more excited you get and the more you want to work to help her win.”

Christine was born in Utah, and graduated from Humboldt County High School in Winnemucca, NV. She and her family moved to Southern Arizona in 1969, and she graduated from U of A in 1972, with a degree in Education. Upon graduation, she began her career as an educator. “I absolutely loved teaching,” she said.

In 1975, she married the love of her life, Michael Dayton. She and Michael have three adult children: Noah, who served in the Marines; Keeley, who is getting her MBA at Bowling Green State University in Ohio; and Sean, who just graduated from high school and will be a freshman at U of A in the fall.

Christine was a formative influence on the life of young Gabrielle Giffords, when Gabrielle was a student in Mrs. Dayton’s second-grade class at Tanque Verde Elementary School.

“Gabrielle was so much fun in the classroom. She was very bright, very creative and very inquisitive. Even when she was my student you could see that Gabrielle was very special,” Christine said. “She was very opinionated. She stood up for what she believed in. Even back then, she was interested in the environment — the desert and its ecology.”

Christine never forgot Gabrielle and knew she was going on to great things. She kept an eye on her and watched her career. Given Gabrielle’s record of fighting for the environment, and her bold plan to invest in renewable energy and decrease greenhouse gas emissions, Christine feels that she might have had an impact on Gabrielle. “As her teacher, I take great pride in her accomplishments. I taught my students to ‘Reuse, Reduce, and Recycle.’ For thirty years I taught these things. Hopefully it influenced her.”

Christine believes that Gabrielle is the candidate who can bring about a new direction in Washington. “We really do need change in Washington and Gabrielle’s such a positive influence. The more you hear her speak, the more excited you get and the harder you want to work to help her win,” Christine said. “We’ve got a great hope here. With everything going on in the world, she’s one of the best political leaders we’ve got.”

Christine retired from teaching in 2003. She is a Democratic Party activist who serves as the Outreach Coordinator of the Democrats of Oro Valley . She also volunteers at Tucson’s VA Hospital. She and Michael love to travel and hope to visit America’s National Parks.