Mrs. New York 2025 winner Colonel Christina Fanitzi talks with “Enable: The Disability Podcast” about her experience in the U.S. Army, her Top 6 finish in the Mrs. America Pageant, and her platform of Spina Bifida awareness, research and resources.
She was inspired by her son, Christian, who was born with Spina Bifida Myelomeningocele and Hydrocephalus – conditions that affect mobility, continence, and development. She was also named New York State’s Mother of the Year in 2025, but doesn’t take any of it lightly.
“I think people would look at me and be like, ‘Oh she’s an Army officer, New York State Mother of the Year,’ all this stuff. But I struggle. It’s not easy. It’s not effortless,” she said. “It takes a lot of work.”
”Nothing worth it is easy," she added. “I got to give myself a lot of grace, and you got to give yourself grace... You’re doing the best you could possibly do and your kid knows it.”
“Enable: The Disability Podcast,” about amazing people with disabilities and different abilities, will release new episodes weekly on YouTube and all major podcast platforms, including Spotify, Apple, Amazon and iHeart.
Follow facebook.com/enablepodcast or @enablepodcast on Instagram and TikTok for more.
About the hosts
Geoff Herbert, who was born with a profound binaural hearing loss, is a reporter, SEO Lead and content supervisor for syracuse.com | The Post-Standard. Despite being mostly deaf in both ears, he’s also worked as a DJ for 25 years, including 10 years in radio (as “DeafGeoff”) and 10 years as a wedding DJ in Upstate New York. He learned how to communicate orally with hearing aids, lipreading and speech therapy, and embraces assistive technology like visual waveforms in music programs, closed captioning/subtitles, and video calls.
Kurt Hower, who has worked at Advance Local for over 35 years, is a leader both in the media industry and in the community. He has been actively involved in leading change as the print industry has continued to rapidly evolve, while also serving on a variety of boards including the Central PA Chapter Arthritis Foundation Board of Directors where he was Chairman of Board Development and a member of the Public Policy and Advocacy Committee. Hower has ankylosing spondylitis, a rare disease that causes arthritis of the spine, and encourages others to focus on what they can contribute to society rather than their challenges.
Community at Work Job Fair
The Community at Work Virtual Job Fair offers an inclusive and accessible platform connecting a diverse, skilled talent pool with employers eager to build dynamic teams. See open jobs and more at advancemediany.com/career-fair-2025.
Note: Views expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect the views of Advance Local.
