Ashley Gagnon, PA-C, is a nationally certified Physician Assistant and Navy veteran. She was born in West Palm Beach, Florida and raised in Lake Havasu City, Arizona. Her father raced snowmobiles professionally and when he retired became a welder and fabricator. Her mother was a homemaker, managed the family businesses, and worked in finances at a local bank. Ashley graduated from Lake Havasu High School and left for the military after the summer.
After 5 years in the Navy and deploying overseas, she completed her Bachelor of Science degree in Biology from Arizona State University, where she graduated with honors. Ashley went on to getting accepted to a highly selective Master’s program at Arizona State University for research in cancer and autoimmune disorders. She then went onto Le Moyne College in Syracuse, New York where she completed school to become a Physician Assistant.
Ashley trained in a multitude of fields to include hematology/oncology, trauma surgery, emergency medicine, internal medicine, pediatrics, psychiatry, OB/GYN, and family medicine. It was during her time at North Star, under Dr. Lelcu, that she felt the most at home. She made meaningful connections with the patients and staff and knew that is where she wanted to be. She also fell in love with the Brainerd lakes area and all that it had to offer.
Ashley and her husband, Josh, bought a home in Nisswa. They have a son, Gunnar, who is six years old, in first grade, and plays hockey with the Brainerd Amateur Hockey Association. Josh, a Minnesotan native from Hackensack, met Ashley during their time together in the military. If they aren’t at a hockey practice or game, you will find Ashley and her family either traveling, on the boat, cheering on the Vikings, or track side at BIR!
Ashley will be helping with out FREE Diabetes Awareness Month screenings. Read about it here.
