2010
880 E 2nd St, Tucson, AZ 85719, United States
Gabrielle Giffords speaks on election night at Democratic Election Headquarters as her husband Mark Kelly (L) applauds at the Tucson Marriott University Park Ballroom on November 2, 2010, in Tucson, Arizona. (Photo by Tom Willett)
2011
1333 Moursund St, Houston, TX 77030, United States
Gabrielle Giffords poses for a photo the day after the launch of NASA space shuttle Endeavour and the day before she had her cranioplasty surgery, outside TIRR Memorial Hermann Hospital May 17, 2011, in Houston, Texas. (Photo by P.K. Weis)
2012
First St SE, Washington, DC 20004, United States
Gabrielle Giffords (L) is escorted down the hall by Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz after she resigned from the House of Representatives on Capitol Hill on January 25, 2012, in Washington, DC. (Photo by Mark Wilson)
2012
Pier 86, W 46th St, New York, NY 10036, United States
Gabrielle Giffords receives the 2012 Salute to Women award from Intrepid Sea, Air, and Space Museum at the museum's 21st annual "Salute to Freedom" dinner on May 24, 2012, in New York City. (Photo by Spencer Platt)
2013
New York City, NY, USA
Gabrielle Giffords, who was critically injured two years ago when a gunman opened fire in Tucson, Arizona, and her husband, astronaut Mark Kelly talk to Diane Sawyer about the need for changes in gun control laws and greater awareness of mental health issues on January 5, 2013, in New York City. (Photo by Ida Mae Astute)
2013
Tucson, Arizona, USA
Mark Kelly leans his head on the shoulder of his wife and former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords as they attend a news conference asking Congress and the Senate to provide stricter gun control in the United States on March 6, 2013, in Tucson, Arizona. (Photo by Joshua Lott)
2016
First St SE, Washington, DC 20004, United States
Gabby Giffords and Rep. Elizabeth Esty listen to Barack Obama deliver the State of the Union speech before members of Congress in the House chamber of the Capitol on January 12, 2016, in Washington, DC. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla)
2016
3601 S Broad St, Philadelphia, PA 19148, United States
Gabby Giffords waves to the crowd as her husband, retired NASA Astronaut and Navy Captain Mark Kelly, looks on after delivering remarks on the third day of the Democratic National Convention at the Wells Fargo Center, July 27, 2016, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Alex Wong)
2016
Miami, Florida, USA
Gabrielle Giffords walks with her husband retired NASA astronaut Mark Kelly after joining with anti-gun violence activists and victims' families to discuss the impact of gun violence on August 12, 2016, in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Joe Raedle)
2016
City Hall Park, New York, NY 10007, United States
Gabby Giffords during a visit to City Hall on her 2016 Vocal Majority Tour on October 17, 2016, in New York City. (Photo by Spencer Platt)
2017
Galveston, Texas, USA
Mark Kelly and his wife Gabrielle Giffords share the podium during the commissioning of the USS Gabrielle Giffords on June 10, 2017, in Galveston, Texas. (Photo by Daniel Kramer)
2017
First St SE, Washington, DC 20004, United States
Gabby Giffords (C) is joined by Rep. Mike Thompson (L), Rep. John Lewis, and dozens of fellow Democrats during a rally on the East Front steps of the U.S. House of Representatives on October 4, 2017, in Washington, DC. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla)
2017
200 Eastern Pkwy, Brooklyn, NY 11238, United States
Gabrielle Giffords speaks onstage during Glamour Celebrates 2017 Women Of The Year Live Summit at Brooklyn Museum on November 13, 2017, in New York City. (Photo by Craig Barritt)
2017
1027 Flatbush Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11226, United States
Gabrielle Giffords and Mark Kelly attend the 2017 Glamour Women of The Year Awards at Kings Theatre on November 13, 2017, in New York City. (Photo by Noam Galai)
2018
First St SE, Washington, DC 20004, United States
Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ) (R) waves to a friend as her husband, retired Navy combat veteran and NASA astronaut Mark Kelly (2nd R), and her chief of staff Pia Carusone (3rd R) look on after a news conference on gun control March 23, 2018, on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. (Photo by Alex Wong)
2018
Washington City, USA
Mark Kelly and Gabrielle Giffords attend the March For Our Lives on March 24, 2018, in Washington City. (Photo by Gotham)
2018
72 5th Ave, New York, NY 10011, United States
Gabrielle Giffords attends Teen Vogue Summit 2018: #TurnUp - Day 2 at The New School on June 2, 2018, in New York City. (Photo by Cindy Ord)
2019
Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
Gabrielle Giffords (L) hugs Democratic presidential candidate, former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden after he spoke at the 2020 Gun Safety Forum hosted by gun control activist groups Giffords and March for Our Lives at Enclave on October 2, 2019, in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller)
2019
First St SE, Washington, DC 20004, United States
Gabby Giffords (C) joins other gun violence survivors and safety advocates for a news conference to introduce legislation to expand background checks for firearm sales in the Rayburn Room of the Capitol on January 08, 2019, in Washington, DC. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla)
2019
First St SE, Washington, DC 20004, United States
Gabby Giffords (C) joins Rep. Mike Thompson (R), chair of the Gun Violence Prevention Task Force, and other gun violence survivors and safety advocates for a news conference to introduce legislation to expand background checks for firearm sales in the Rayburn Room of the Capitol January 08, 2019, in Washington, DC. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla)
2019
First St SE, Washington, DC 20004, United States
Gabby Giffords listens as Democratic lawmakers speak in support of gun background checks legislation bill H.R. 8 on Capitol Hill on February 26, 2019, in Washington, DC. (Photo by Joshua Roberts)
2019
First St SE, Washington, DC 20004, United States
Gabrielle Giffords delivers remarks during a press conference with Democratic Lawmakers on gun violence along the east front of the U.S. Capitol on June 20, 2019, in Washington, DC. (Photo by Tom Brenner)
2019
Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
Gabrielle Giffords waves as she arrives at the 2020 Gun Safety Forum hosted by gun control activist groups Giffords and March for Our Lives at Enclave on October 2, 2019, in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller)
2019
First St SE, Washington, DC 20004, United States
Gabby Giffords walks with Rep. Mike Thompson as she arrives to join Democratic lawmakers in support of gun background checks legislation bill H.R. 8 on Capitol Hill on February 26, 2019, in Washington, DC. (Photo by Joshua Roberts)
2020
Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA
Gabrielle Giffords addresses the virtual convention on August 19, 2020. The convention, which was once expected to draw 50,000 people to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, is now taking place virtually due to the coronavirus pandemic. (Photo by DNCC)
2010
880 E 2nd St, Tucson, AZ 85719, United States
Gabrielle Giffords speaks on election night at Democratic Election Headquarters as her husband Mark Kelly (L) applauds at the Tucson Marriott University Park Ballroom on November 2, 2010, in Tucson, Arizona. (Photo by Tom Willett)
2011
1333 Moursund St, Houston, TX 77030, United States
Gabrielle Giffords poses for a photo the day after the launch of NASA space shuttle Endeavour and the day before she had her cranioplasty surgery, outside TIRR Memorial Hermann Hospital May 17, 2011, in Houston, Texas. (Photo by P.K. Weis)
2012
First St SE, Washington, DC 20004, United States
Gabrielle Giffords (L) is escorted down the hall by Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz after she resigned from the House of Representatives on Capitol Hill on January 25, 2012, in Washington, DC. (Photo by Mark Wilson)
2012
Pier 86, W 46th St, New York, NY 10036, United States
Gabrielle Giffords receives the 2012 Salute to Women award from Intrepid Sea, Air, and Space Museum at the museum's 21st annual "Salute to Freedom" dinner on May 24, 2012, in New York City. (Photo by Spencer Platt)
2013
New York City, NY, USA
Gabrielle Giffords, who was critically injured two years ago when a gunman opened fire in Tucson, Arizona, and her husband, astronaut Mark Kelly talk to Diane Sawyer about the need for changes in gun control laws and greater awareness of mental health issues on January 5, 2013, in New York City. (Photo by Ida Mae Astute)
2013
Tucson, Arizona, USA
Mark Kelly leans his head on the shoulder of his wife and former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords as they attend a news conference asking Congress and the Senate to provide stricter gun control in the United States on March 6, 2013, in Tucson, Arizona. (Photo by Joshua Lott)
2016
First St SE, Washington, DC 20004, United States
Gabby Giffords and Rep. Elizabeth Esty listen to Barack Obama deliver the State of the Union speech before members of Congress in the House chamber of the Capitol on January 12, 2016, in Washington, DC. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla)
2016
3601 S Broad St, Philadelphia, PA 19148, United States
Gabby Giffords waves to the crowd as her husband, retired NASA Astronaut and Navy Captain Mark Kelly, looks on after delivering remarks on the third day of the Democratic National Convention at the Wells Fargo Center, July 27, 2016, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Alex Wong)
2016
Miami, Florida, USA
Gabrielle Giffords walks with her husband retired NASA astronaut Mark Kelly after joining with anti-gun violence activists and victims' families to discuss the impact of gun violence on August 12, 2016, in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Joe Raedle)
2016
City Hall Park, New York, NY 10007, United States
Gabby Giffords during a visit to City Hall on her 2016 Vocal Majority Tour on October 17, 2016, in New York City. (Photo by Spencer Platt)
2017
Galveston, Texas, USA
Mark Kelly and his wife Gabrielle Giffords share the podium during the commissioning of the USS Gabrielle Giffords on June 10, 2017, in Galveston, Texas. (Photo by Daniel Kramer)
2017
First St SE, Washington, DC 20004, United States
Gabby Giffords (C) is joined by Rep. Mike Thompson (L), Rep. John Lewis, and dozens of fellow Democrats during a rally on the East Front steps of the U.S. House of Representatives on October 4, 2017, in Washington, DC. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla)
2017
200 Eastern Pkwy, Brooklyn, NY 11238, United States
Gabrielle Giffords speaks onstage during Glamour Celebrates 2017 Women Of The Year Live Summit at Brooklyn Museum on November 13, 2017, in New York City. (Photo by Craig Barritt)
2017
1027 Flatbush Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11226, United States
Gabrielle Giffords and Mark Kelly attend the 2017 Glamour Women of The Year Awards at Kings Theatre on November 13, 2017, in New York City. (Photo by Noam Galai)
2018
First St SE, Washington, DC 20004, United States
Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ) (R) waves to a friend as her husband, retired Navy combat veteran and NASA astronaut Mark Kelly (2nd R), and her chief of staff Pia Carusone (3rd R) look on after a news conference on gun control March 23, 2018, on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. (Photo by Alex Wong)
2018
Washington City, USA
Mark Kelly and Gabrielle Giffords attend the March For Our Lives on March 24, 2018, in Washington City. (Photo by Gotham)
2018
72 5th Ave, New York, NY 10011, United States
Gabrielle Giffords attends Teen Vogue Summit 2018: #TurnUp - Day 2 at The New School on June 2, 2018, in New York City. (Photo by Cindy Ord)
2019
Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
Gabrielle Giffords (L) hugs Democratic presidential candidate, former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden after he spoke at the 2020 Gun Safety Forum hosted by gun control activist groups Giffords and March for Our Lives at Enclave on October 2, 2019, in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller)
2019
First St SE, Washington, DC 20004, United States
Gabby Giffords (C) joins other gun violence survivors and safety advocates for a news conference to introduce legislation to expand background checks for firearm sales in the Rayburn Room of the Capitol on January 08, 2019, in Washington, DC. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla)
2019
First St SE, Washington, DC 20004, United States
Gabby Giffords (C) joins Rep. Mike Thompson (R), chair of the Gun Violence Prevention Task Force, and other gun violence survivors and safety advocates for a news conference to introduce legislation to expand background checks for firearm sales in the Rayburn Room of the Capitol January 08, 2019, in Washington, DC. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla)
2019
First St SE, Washington, DC 20004, United States
Gabby Giffords listens as Democratic lawmakers speak in support of gun background checks legislation bill H.R. 8 on Capitol Hill on February 26, 2019, in Washington, DC. (Photo by Joshua Roberts)
2019
First St SE, Washington, DC 20004, United States
Gabrielle Giffords delivers remarks during a press conference with Democratic Lawmakers on gun violence along the east front of the U.S. Capitol on June 20, 2019, in Washington, DC. (Photo by Tom Brenner)
2019
Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
Gabrielle Giffords waves as she arrives at the 2020 Gun Safety Forum hosted by gun control activist groups Giffords and March for Our Lives at Enclave on October 2, 2019, in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller)
2019
First St SE, Washington, DC 20004, United States
Gabby Giffords walks with Rep. Mike Thompson as she arrives to join Democratic lawmakers in support of gun background checks legislation bill H.R. 8 on Capitol Hill on February 26, 2019, in Washington, DC. (Photo by Joshua Roberts)
2020
Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA
Gabrielle Giffords addresses the virtual convention on August 19, 2020. The convention, which was once expected to draw 50,000 people to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, is now taking place virtually due to the coronavirus pandemic. (Photo by DNCC)
Gabby Giffords, childhood photo
Obama standing with his arms folded and smiling.
(From one of the most admired and beloved couples in recen...)
From one of the most admired and beloved couples in recent American history, an extraordinarily moving story of public service, risk-taking, romance - and the journey toward recovery. This book delivers hope and redemption in the face of the tragic shooting and introduces two unforgettable heroes.
https://www.amazon.com/Gabby-Story-Courage-Gabrielle-Giffords/dp/1451661061/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Gabby+Giffords&qid=1605797099&s=books&sr=1-1
2011
(Former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and her husband, ...)
Former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and her husband, astronaut Mark Kelly, share their impassioned argument for responsible gun ownership. After the 2011 Tucson shooting that nearly took her life, basic questions consumed Gabby Giffords and her family: Would Gabby survive the bullet through her brain? Would she walk again? Speak? Her hard-won recovery, though far from complete, has now allowed her and Mark to ask larger questions that confront us as a nation: How can we address our nation’s epidemic of gun violence?
https://www.amazon.com/Enough-audiobook/dp/B00M9IDAXU/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=Gabby+Giffords&qid=1605797099&s=books&sr=1-3
2014
Gabby Giffords was born on June 8, 1970, in Tucson, Arizona, the United States, to Gloria Kay (née Fraser) and Spencer J. Giffords. Her father worked as a businessman who ran the family's tire company, and her mother devoted her time to the arts as a painter and art restorer. Giffords has an older sister named Melissa and an older half-brother named Alejandro. Through her father, Giffords is a second cousin of actress Gwyneth Paltrow and director Jake Paltrow.
Giffords had some interesting adventures growing up. She and her older sister Melissa spent some of their summers going across the border to go camping in Mexico. Giffords also developed a passion for horses, and she worked in a stable to earn the money to cover riding lessons.
Giffords graduated in 1988 from the University High School in Tucson. She was a Girl Scout, too. She studied at Scripps College, a women’s college in California, and received a Bachelor of Arts degree in sociology and Latin American history in 1993. She then earned a William Fulbright Scholarship and studied in Chihuahua, Mexico, for a year. In 1996, she got a master’s degree in regional planning from Cornell University, Ithaca, New York.
After completing her studies, she worked for six months as an associate at Price Waterhouse in New York City. Giffords gave up her corporate career to return to Tucson to help with the family business. She became the president and chief executive officer of El Campo Tire, and she stayed with the company until 2000 when it was sold to Goodyear Tire.
After her return to Tucson, Giffords became interested in helping people in her community. She decided the best way to improve things was to enter politics. Giffords was elected to a seat in the Arizona State House on her first try for office in 2000. She served in this post till 2003. In 2002, she ran for the Arizona Senate and won, thereby becoming the youngest woman elected to the Arizona Senate. She joined the Senate in 2003 and was re-elected in 2004.
Seeking a new opportunity to help the people of Arizona, Giffords resigned from office in December 2005 to seek the congressional seat being vacated by Representative Jim Kolbe of the 8th Congressional District. As the first to announce her candidacy for Kolbe's seat, Giffords established herself as his natural replacement and began an aggressive campaign for the seat.
Come election time, the former state senator defeated Republican Randy Graf by earning roughly 54 percent of the vote. Her opponent, Republican Randy Graf, secured 42% of the votes. She became the first woman of Jewish descent to be elected to the Congress from Arizona.
For her second term elections in 2008, Gifford faced a tough challenge from Republican candidate Timothy Bee, who was the president of the Arizona State Senate, and her childhood classmate. She won the elections with 56.20% of the total votes.
As the head of a district that shares a 100-mile border with Mexico, Giffords focused her efforts on addressing border security and violence associated with drug trafficking in the region. In 2009, she invited 60 federal, state, and local law enforcement officers to a drug violence summit, in order to address the trafficking issues in northern Mexico and their effect on the United States.
She was re-elected for her third term on November 5, 2010, when she won with a slim margin against Republican candidate Jesse Kelly. When Giffords won the November 2010 general election, she continued her fight to protect Arizona borders. She joined other Democratic members of her state's congressional delegation in supporting a $600 million border-security bill.
This legislation, later signed by President Barack Obama, allowed for the hiring of 1,000 border control agents and additional staffing in other areas of border-related personnel. According to the Tucson Sentinel, she said the newly approved funds were "a down payment on long-overdue efforts to secure our border."
In addition to her border security efforts, Giffords pushed for small business tax relief and limits to the alternative minimum tax. She was also an outspoken supporter of the health care reform bill of 2010, also known as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. Her push for universal healthcare drew criticism from some of her constituents; the senator was allegedly harassed because of her support for the measure. Her office was later vandalized, an attack that may have been connected to her vote in support of the Affordable Care Act.
Later that year she endured an aggressive challenge to her seat from Republican candidate Jesse Kelly, who was backed by Tea Party supporters; Giffords won reelection by only a slim margin. On January 8, 2011, while hosting a "Congress on Your Corner" meeting with constituents in the parking lot of a supermarket in Tucson, Giffords was shot in the head by Jared Lee Loughner, a constituent she had met at a similar event several years earlier. Giffords survived the attack, though six people, including a nine-year-old girl, were killed and 12 others were injured.
After the shooting, Giffords was rushed to the hospital where she underwent emergency surgery. She made a remarkable comeback from her injuries in the weeks and months that followed. She regained her ability to talk, walk, and handle other everyday activities after going through extensive rehabilitation. Giffords was even well enough to attend the launch of the Space Shuttle Endeavour that May. Her husband, Mark Kelly, was the commander of that mission.
Her assailant, Jared Lee Loughner, pleaded not guilty to the shooting-related charges in 2011. The following August, he switched his plea to guilty to avoid the death penalty. In November 2012, he was sentenced to seven life terms plus 140 years in prison, according to the New York Times. The shooter, Jared Lee Loughner, faced trial for more than 50 federal criminal charges. In November 2012, he pleaded guilty in a plea bargain, to avoid a death sentence, and was sentenced to seven life terms and 140 years in prison, without the possibility of parole.
Giffords attended the House of Representatives on August 1, 2011, which was her first public appearance after the assassination attempt, to vote for "raising the debt limit ceiling." She was greeted with a standing ovation and accolades. She could not fully use her right side and had trouble speaking. By then, she had also lost 50% of the vision in her eyes.
Three months later she and her husband published Gabby: A Story of Courage and Hope (written with Jeffrey Zaslow). Their second book, Enough: Our Fight to Keep America Safe from Gun Violence, was published in May 2017. She submitted her resignation from her Congress seat on January 25, 2012, as she needed to devote time to her recovery.
Gabby Giffords was the third woman in Arizona's history to be elected to the United States Congress. An advocate for border security, alternative energy development, and improved veterans’ benefits, Giffords took pride in her centrist record first in the Arizona legislature and then in Congress.
The United States Navy combat ship, USS Gabrielle Giffords, named in her honor, was commissioned into service on June 12, 2017, in Texas. She is the first living woman to have a Navy warship named after her. The only other woman was Martha Washington in 1776. She is also the third living woman in the United States to have a naval vessel named after her.
(From one of the most admired and beloved couples in recen...)
2011(Former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and her husband, ...)
2014Gabby Giffords was raised in a mixed religious environment but follows Judaism since 2001 and belongs to Congregation Chaverim, a Reform synagogue, in Tucson.
At 18, inspired by Supreme Court justice Sandra Day O’Connor, Gabby Giffords registered as a Republican. However, in 1999, she switched to the Democratic Party. As a member of Congress, Giffords was considered a centrist Democrat. Although she allied herself with the Blue Dog Coalition of fiscally conservative Democrats, she supported many of the economic policies of President Barack Obama.
While she was a vocal advocate of immigration reform - her congressional district bordered Mexico - she opposed a particularly stringent Arizona law enacted in 2010 that targeted illegal immigrants. In 2019 Giffords husband, Mark Kelly, announced that he was running for the Senate, and Giffords took an active role in his campaign. In addition, she endorsed Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential race.
Since leaving Congress, Giffords and her husband established Americans for Responsible Solutions to combat gun violence. In 2016 their organization joined the Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence and was renamed Giffords: Courage to Fight Gun Violence. Additionally, Giffords championed legislation on renewable energy.
Quotations:
"We're gun owners, we support gun rights, but at the same time, we've got to do everything to keep guns out of the hands of criminals and the dangerously mentally ill. It is not difficult to do that. This issue, like many others, has become very polarizing and political but we are trying to bring some balance to the debate in Washington."
"Our country must be strong enough to solve problems, and that means we must learn how to work together again."
"My position is to listen to my constituents, learn from the best information available, and ultimately make sound, rational decisions that are going to be beneficial to the people of the 8th Congressional District."
Gabby Giffords is an avid reader. She also enjoys spending her free time playing the French horn, biking, practicing yoga, and learning Spanish.
Quotes from others about the person
"Gabby Giffords was a friend of mine. She is not only an extraordinary public servant, but she is also somebody who is warm and caring. She is well-liked by her colleagues and well-liked by her constituents." - Barack Obama
Gabby Giffords married Mark Kelly on November 10, 2007. She had met him four years earlier, on a trip to China. He is a former Navy pilot and NASA astronaut.
Gabby was her father's daughter, and she had an absolute loyalty to him.
Mark and Gabby made their permanent home in Arizona in 2012 after he left NASA and retired from the Navy and she resigned from Congress to focus on her rehabilitation and recovery.
