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So excited to share this announcement as the first CRNA brand ambassador (Drumroll, please🥁). We are delighted to welcome our NEWEST ambassador, Crystal Grant, to the Cherokee family. The MSN/CRNA and successful author shared with us a story that is a true testament to the strength of the human spirit. Next-level ambition doesn’t hurt either. ☺️ Originally from Springfield, Massachusetts, it was Crystal’s personal tragedy that inspired her career path, when her mother was diagnosed with stage four uterine cancer. “I knew I'd need a career that would allow me to provide for myself, and also reward me by caring for others.” Her mother passed in 2000, during her junior year of nursing school, which led to some of her darkest years. She soldiered on, graduating with a BSN from North Carolina A&T State University and started her ICU nursing career. She struggled with self-identity as a minority in healthcare, while battling depression from losing her mom. In 2006 her grief was reignited, when she also lost her father to cancer. “I was a lost soul, searching for love and healing in all the wrong places.” In 2009, with support from older brother Ty, then a soon-to-be RN, she applied to CRNA school. The month of her first interview Ty was killed in a motorcycle accident on his way home from work. The sudden devastation hit her harder than the loss of her parents. Rejected by four programs (and waitlisted for one), she finally got her “Yes” from Rutgers University in New Jersey! After 28 grueling months in CRNA school, she graduated with an MSN in Nurse Anesthesia in 2012, passed her boards in 2013, and has been slaying ever since. She’s worked at trauma centers, community hospitals and ambulatory surgical centers. The self-published amazon author has had two #1 book releases; her first, 'Acceptance Granted: One Woman’s Journey to becoming a CRNA' and 'The Super CRNA.' It's aimed at introducing younger readers to a career in nurse anesthesia. @crysgcrna is a pro from head to toe: she is sporting our NEW Rev Tech fluid barrier Lab Cost and this stunning bold and colorful cap from @tribalwave. We are off-the-charts excited to welcome her to the Cherokee fam💯.

A post shared by Crystal G, MSN,CRNA,APRN (@crysgcrna) on Aug 1, 2020 at 1:34pm PDT

I chatted over Zoom with Crystal A. Grant, a nurse anesthesiologist, who has just released a short book for kids about the power of being a healthcare provider called “The Super CRNA”. Crystal wants to show young people, especially kids of color, the positive aspects of a career in nursing and how nurses are sometimes real-life superheroes!! Check out the full interview!!