Crystal was born to a 15-year-old young lady from Mora, NM. Her mother was in high school, and, luckily for her, the principal, Jose G Lucero, and his wife Stella took Crystal’s mother under their wings. Crystal then became their goddaughter. Her Padrino (godfather) was a Sergeant in the Army during WWII, he was also a Bataan Death March survivor, so she had the privilege of growing up listening to his stories. When she was little, he told her she was born to be a soldier because Crystal’s birthday is March 4th, and soldiers always “march forward.” In 5th grade, Crystal was a female Army 1st Lieutenant’s pen pal while she was deployed to Operation Desert Storm. Crystal knew then that she, too, wanted to be a soldier like the lieutenant. Coming from poverty and having a mother that was not fully capable of taking care of her, Crystal went into foster care, where she remained until emancipation at 16. At 17, she enlisted and began to live out her childhood dream.

Crystal obtained four Military Occupational Specialties (MOS), held various positions, and successfully ran many programs like the DoD Innovative Readiness Training Program throughout her military career, beginning in logistics and later transferring to a Public Affairs Detachment. She then transitioned to the 64th Weapons of Mass Destruction-Civil Support Team as a Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear (CBRN) Specialist. There she helped run operations and was activated for the Space Shuttle Columbia recovery efforts in 2003 and Hurricane Katrina, Rita, and Ike. Concurrently, she served with the New Mexico Counter Narcotics Task Force serving as the Finance and Executive assistant to the commander. In her final years in the military, she was a Senior Human Resources Specialist, Platoon Sergeant, Sexual Assault Victim Advocate, member of the Safety Council, National Guard Bureau Counterdrug Program Evaluation team member, and the Joint Substance Abuse Program Coordinator for the State of New Mexico where she ran the drug testing program for all National Guard service members.

After her honorable discharge, in 2014, Crystal struggled to adjust to civilian life and found herself battling depression and PTSD. That struggle is what prompted her to start volunteering to help other veterans, that are presumably, worse off than she is. This was to be her path to redemption and the way she plans to make her mark in the veteran’s community: through her advocacy. She resides in Albuquerque, New Mexico with her twin daughters, Rosea and Isabella. Her oldest daughter Jaedon is currently a Junior at NM State University.

Her awards include the following: Meritorious Service Medal, Army Commendation Medals (x3), Army Achievement Medal (x4), Reserve Overseas Service Ribbon, National Defense Service Medal, Noncommissioned Officer Professional Development Ribbon (x3), Army Service Ribbon, and Global War on Terrorism Service Medal.