The Honorable Donna M. Christensen continues to distinguish herself as a leader in the United States Congress. As a Member serving her sixth term, she is the first female physician in the history of the U.S. Congress, the first woman to represent an offshore Territory, and the first woman Delegate from the United States Virgin Islands.

In the 110^th Congress, Delegate Christensen serves on the following House Committees, Subcommittees and Caucuses: She serves on the Committee on Natural Resources, which oversees territorial and public land issues, and on the Homeland Security Committee which oversees preparing the nation to prevent and withstand attack.

Delegate Christensen chairs the Natural Resources Subcommittee on Insular Affairs which oversees the affairs of the offshore territories to include Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, the Northern Marianas Islands, American Samoa and the freely associated states of the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic of Palau. The Subcommittee has been reinstated after 12 years with the Democratic takeover of the House. She also serves on the Homeland Security Subcommittees on Emergency Communications, Preparedness and Response and Emerging Threats, Cybersecurity and Science and Technology.

Delegate Christensen is a Member of the Congressional Black Caucus and chairs the Congressional Black Caucus’ Health Braintrust, which oversees and advocates minority health issues nationally and internationally. She is a Member of the Congressional Caucus for Women’s Issues; Member of the Steering Committee of the Congressional Travel and Tourism Caucus; Member of the Congressional Rural Caucus; Member of the Friends of the Caribbean Caucus; Member of the Coastal Caucus; Member of the Congressional Fire Caucus and additionally, a Member of the Congressional National Guard and Reserve Caucus.

She was born in 1945 to the late Judge Almeric Christian and Virginia Sterling Christian. She earned a Bachelor of Science in 1966 at St. Mary’s College in Notre Dame, Indiana. She earned an M.D. (Doctor of Medicine) in 1970 from George Washington University School of Medicine in Washington, D.C. She interned at Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco, California from 1970 to 1971 and did her residency in family medicine at Howard University Medical Center from 1973 to 1974. She became a board certified physician in 1977.

Christensen began her medical career in the Virgin Islands in 1975 as an emergency room physician. She served as staff physician at the Maternal & Child Health program, Medical Director of the Nesbitt Clinic in Frederiksted, Director of the Frederiksted Health Center, Director of Maternal and Child Health and Family Planning, served as the Medical Director of the St. Croix Hospital and rounded out her medical career as the Territorial Assistant Commissioner of Health and as the Acting Commissioner of Health. She maintained a private practice in family medicine from 1975 until her election to Congress in 1996.

Christensen is a member of the National Medical Association, the Virgin Islands Medical Society, the Caribbean Studies Association, the Caribbean Youth Organization and the Virgin Islands Medical Institute. Prior to her election to Congress she served on a variety of church and civic associations.

She is the mother of two daughters, Rabiah Green-George and Karida Green and the grandmother of Nia Elena Hamilton, Kobi George and Nealia Williams. She is the granddaughter of the late renowned Virgin Islands educator Elena Christian. Congresswoman Christensen also gained two new daughters, Lisa and Esther, and two sons, Bryan and David, through her 1998 marriage to Chris Christensen.