10 military spouses who made a difference

Business Insider
May 8, 2018 9:08 PM PDT
1 minute read
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SUMMARY

Beside most members of the military is a spouse who keeps life going while a husband or wife serves. While every military family serves their country with pride, some military spouses go above and beyond to help their communities. Meet 1…

Beside most members of the military is a spouse who keeps life going while a husband or wife serves.

While every military family serves their country with pride, some military spouses go above and beyond to help their communities.

Meet 10 inspiring military spouses are making a difference:


Taya Kyle

(U.S. Army National Guard photo by Maj. Scott Hawks)

Taya Kyle, the widow of Navy SEAL and most lethal sniper in US history Chris Kyle, has been an advocate since her husband was killed in 2013.

In 2014, she started the Chris Kyle Frog Foundation with the goal of connecting military families and veterans, and providing interactive experiences to enrich family relationships.

Kyle and her husband's story became the subject of the Academy Award-nominated film "American Sniper".

Tiffany Smiley

(Scotty Smiley)

Tiffany Smiley's husband, Army Major Scott Smiley, served in Iraq for six months until a car bomb in Mosul sent shrapnel into his eyes that would leave him blind for the rest of his life.

As an advocate for the power of military spouses, Tiffany speaks around the country to raise awareness about issues surrounding military members and their spouses.

In 2010, Tiffany and her husband published a book, "Hope Unseen," based on their experiences as a military family. She has met with Ivanka Trump to push for legislation supporting military families and spoke at a bank-run event about how and why companies should recruit veterans.

Krystel Spell

(StreetShares)

As the wife of an enlisted member of the Army, Kyrstel Spell had always wanted to share her experiences as a military spouse with others. Now, she has become a popular voice in the military blogging world.

Spell launched three sites: Army Wife 101, to cover military lifestyle, travel, and parenting; Retail Salute, to gather military discounts in one place; and SoFluential, to connect influencers from military families with businesses looking to hire them.

Amanda Crowe

(U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation)

Amanda Patterson Crowe is a senior manager for the Hiring Our Heroes Military Spouse Programand a director of the Military Spouse Professional Network for Hiring Our Heroes, a program funded by the US Chamber of Commerce Foundation.

Crowe manages more than 40 chapters focused on career development and networking opportunities for military spouses in communities around the world. She also runs AMPLIFY, two-day career events for military spouses.

Stephanie Brown

(The Rosie Network)

Stephanie Brown is the wife of retired Navy Admiral R. Thomas L. Brown, who was a SEAL.

Brown, who has spent over 20 years supporting military families, veterans, and wounded warriors, started The Rosie Network when she was trying to find a contractor to repair her family's home.

Brown wanted to hire a veteran, but was having trouble finding one on existing search sites, so she decided to create a database for the public to access businesses owned by military families. And The Rosie Network doesn't charge the businesses a fee.

Leigh Searl

(NextGen MilSpouse)

In 15 years as a military spouse, Leigh Searl moved 11 times. Each time, she had to reinvent herself and find new jobs along the way.

So she created America's Career Force, a program to help military spouses find long-term career opportunities that they can work remotely. That way, they can keep their jobs no matter where the location may be — as long as they have access to a phone and internet.

Sue Hoppin

(National Military Spouse Network)

Sue Hoppin is the military spouse of an Air Force officer and who has dedicated her career to advocating for military families.

She started the National Military Spouse Network after spending much of her life volunteering in the military community instead of establishing her own career. The site provides military spouses with networking opportunities.

Hoppin's work has led her to become a consultant on military family issues, and she even authored a "for Dummies" book on "A Family's Guide to the Military."

Amy Crispino

(StreetShares)

Amy Crispino, a member of an Army family, is the co-owner of Chameleon Kids and managing director of Military Kids' Life Magazine.

The magazine, which kids write half of the articles for, aims to help military children see past the challenges of growing up in a military family to focus on the bright side.

Elizabeth Boardman

(Milspo Project)

As the spouse of a Naval officer, Elizabeth Boardman believed that the best way to further her career was by starting her own business, the Milspo Project.

The organization provides networking resources for military spouse entrepreneurs to help them build their own businesses, and connect with other professionals.

Some of the resources includemonthly member meet-ups and online workshops.

Krista Wells

(Wells Consulting Services, LLC)

Marine Corps spouse Krista Wells has put her skills as a life consultant and career coach to work helping out other military families.

She launched Wells Consulting Services to specifically help military spouses who struggle with the challenges of constantly moving and establishing a career.

As a military spouse coach, Wells also created The Military Spouse Show podcast to help fellow spouses overcome the obstacles of being in a military family.

This article originally appeared on Business Insider. Follow @BusinessInsider on Twitter.

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