Taya Kyle

Taya Kyle was born as Taya Renae Studebaker in Portland, Oregon, on September 4, 1974. Her father Kent Studebaker is the mayor of Lake Oswego, Oregon, and her mother Kim Studebaker is a homemaker. Taya has a sister named Ashley Brittell.

Taya met the former US Navy SEAL Chris Kyle in 1999. After dating for almost three years, they got married in 2002. The couple had two children together.

Chris Kyle was a United States Navy SEAL veteran and sniper, remembered as the deadliest sniper in the history of the US military, with a confirmed kill of over 150. After his honorable discharge from the US Navy, Chris wrote his memoir ‘American Sniper: The Autobiography of the Most Lethal Sniper in U.S. Military History’ which became one of the bestselling books in the country. He also served as the president of a tactical training company for the U.S. military and law enforcement communities, named ‘Craft International’.

Later he joined the nonprofit organization FITCO Cares Foundation, which provided veterans with disabilities, Gold Star families, or those suffering from PTSD with free in-home fitness equipment, individualized programs, and personal training. During his time with the organization, he met a veteran Eddie Ray Routh who was struggling with many mental disorders. Chris used to take him to the Rough Creek Ranch-Lodge-Resort shooting range in Erath County, Texas with his friend Chad Littlefield in order to encourage him to get back to social life. On one such trip on February 2, 2013, Eddie shot both Chris and Chad and killed them. He was arrested shortly after. Eddie Routh was sentenced to life in prison with no possibility of parole.

After the death of her husband, Taya attended several meetings and programs for the families of the veterans, giving motivational speeches. She helped families recover from the losses they suffered during the war and joined many activities related to the cause. She founded the ‘Chris Kyle Frog Foundation’ in 2014 which serves the families of the veterans who have lost their lives in the line of duty.

She wrote her autobiography, ‘American Wife: A Memoir of Love, Service, Faith, and Renewal’ with the help of military and war author Jim DeFelice and it was published by the Harper Collins publishing company on May 5, 2015. In the book, she described her experiences during the time Chris was away from home on duty and how she dealt with the untimely death of her husband.

Apart from her involvement with the families of veterans, she has appeared on television to promote various programs that have been working towards the development of veterans and their families. She also appeared as one of the judges in the Miss America pageant in 2015.

She is a Republican and endorsed Rick Perry in the 2016 presidential election and later Ted Cruz when Perry withdrew from the election. She has also voiced her opinion about the gun control laws in the country and how badly stricter laws are needed to prevent unwanted incidents.