Hi, I am Amy Garner. I am originally from Western, New York but have lived in many different places including North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, California and even overseas in Abu Dhabi, UAE. My career-life has always revolved around education and helping people. I’ve taught in many different grade levels ranging from kindergarten to 8th grade. I always appreciated working with the little ones to introduce foundational skills and see them prepare for their future educational experiences. I also worked with the ARC out of college as part of a startup team for the Community Inclusion Program. We provided job skills training; job coaching and assisted the participants to become more integrated in their local community. I enjoyed helping them to develop new skills needed to be successful vocationally and socially.

While living overseas, I started in the classroom teaching English to Arabic speaking children. I worked my way up and became an administrator providing support and training to both the English teachers from around the world and Arabic teachers. When I wasn’t working, I loved exploring the UAE and building lifelong international friendships. During many of my holidays I travelled to other countries. I have now visited 32 countries and would love to add to that. I love learning from other people, experiencing different cultures, and finding out the similarities and differences that make us all unique.

Since leaving the classroom, I worked at SeaWorld Orlando. I was part of the education department where I learned so much about the animals and the importance of conservation. When I am not working, I love to read, travel and spend time with my dog Tucker, my niece and nephews, sister and parents. Family is incredibly important to me and ultimately brought me to Florida in 2019.