Elect Chris Roberts-Gonzalez

Elect Chris Roberts-Gonzalez

BIOGRAPHY Chris Roberts-Gonzalez was born in Gary, Indiana and raised in Merrillville, Indiana. He graduated from Merrillville High School in 1966. After graduation, he was employed with the U.S. Steel Mill in Gary, Indiana for seven years as a scarfer assistant and yard clerk. His love for his country led him to enlist and serve in the U.S. Air Force as an Air Policeman during the Vietnam conflict. After serving four years, Chris Roberts-Gonzalez obtained an Honorable Discharge in 1970. Upon being discharged from the U.S. Air Force, Chris Roberts-Gonzalez enrolled at Triton Junior College in River Grove, Illinois, where he obtained an Associate of Applied Science Degree in Photography in 1972. Later in life, he returned to college to continue his education, and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Communication in 1989 from Columbia College in Chicago, Illinois. Chris Roberts-Gonzalez chose to serve his country a second time, when in 1975 he enlisted in the U.S. Army, 82nd Airborne Division out of Fort Bragg, North Carolina. Upon proudly serving our country in which he was recognized with numerous Letters of Commendation and awards that included the Distinguished Trooper Award, Chris Roberts-Gonzalez received his second Honorable Discharge in 1979 from the United States Army. In 1983, his dedication to protect and serve continued with his employment with the City of Gary as a police officer for over nine years. While in the line of duty, Chris Roberts-Gonzalez was severely injured in a police crash in 1985, in which numerous physicians and medical specialists informed him and his family that he may never walk again. Through sheer determination and against all odds, he not only regained the ability to walk, but returned to work with the Gary Police Department for two more years. In 1994, Chris Roberts-Gonzalez began working for Child Protective Service for the State of Indiana as a Child Protective Service Investigator. He was recognized by the state for his effortless assistance in the successful placement and reuniting of sibling groups as a family. Throughout his entire life, Chris Roberts-Gonzalez has been actively involved in the community with various civic and volunteer work. He was the founder and the Executive Director of Community Connection of Northwest Indiana, Inc., a not-for-profit organization for the prevention of child abuse and neglect. Chris Roberts-Gonzalez has received numerous Certificate of Appreciation Awards from various organizations throughout Lake County, Indiana for outstanding efforts in bringing community awareness to the prevention of child abuse and neglect. He was also involved in the Child Abuse Prevention Coalition, which included the Candlelight Vigil Programs in Lake Station, Indiana. Chris Roberts-Gonzalez is a certified Indiana Law Enforcement Instructor who has volunteered instruction and training in Child Abuse and Neglect to law enforcement throughout Northwest Indiana. He also has served as the President of ECCC, Employee Community Connection Committee, for two years. On January 6, 1999 Chris Roberts-Gonzalez received a certificate of participation in the Entrepreneur Program with the Empowerment Zone by the Hammond Development Corporation for possessing the true entrepreneurial spirit of building and maintaining a business as the World of Photography Academy/Studios. World of Photography was created by Chris Roberts-Gonzalez in 1981 and still exists today at 839 Broadway, Gary, Indiana. Chris Roberts-Gonzalez has been in the Martial Arts since 1974. Chris started the first Tae Kwon Do Karate Team that took first place for the 82nd Airborne Division in 1977. When Chris Roberts-Gonzalez came back to Lake County, Indiana he studied under Master Lee of Highland and received his 2nd Degree Black belt in Tae Kwon Do and opened up three karate schools in Gary, Indiana in 1983. Chris Roberts-Gonzalez resides in Merrillville, and has been married to his wife, Angela, since 1995. He has three children from a previous marriage, and six grandchildren.