It has been quite an eventful week for Tyler Keown. He got married, met his sister Samantha for the first time and leaves for basic training today. His wife Natalle said one of the most memorable aspects of the wedding ceremony was watching her husband meet his sister, a surprise he was not expecting.
According to Natalle, before the wedding ceremony, Tyler’s mom messaged Samantha on Facebook and told her that her brother was entering the Marines. She explained this might be her only chance to meet him before he is permanently stationed somewhere. After telling her he was also getting married and inviting her to be there, she immediately said yes.
“They knew each other existed but they didn’t know how to go about meeting or anything like that,” she said. “I cry every time I re-watch the video when I see his face looking like ‘wow, that’s my sister.’ There had never been an opportune moment for either one of them to meet. It was really special. I loved it.”
Apart from the special introduction of Tyler and his sister, Natalle is most excited to be married to a man she loves. The young couple has been close friends since high school.
When Natalle came home from Morehead State University in 2016, she said the pair picked up right where they left off.
“We were still best friends, we hung out, stuff like that,” she said. “One night he texted me and said he had feelings for me and it kind of kicked off from there,” Keown said.
Although Tyler had often mentioned entering the military, the decision was made quickly after recently sitting down to talk about the future with Natalle.
“He told me he wanted to do something with his life and he was ready to enter the military,” Natalle said. “I totally supported that. When I asked him what that looked like for us, he said he thought we should get married. I immediately thought, let’s do it.”
The couple both come from a military background, with Tyler’s mom serving in the Army reserve and Natalle’s dad serving more than 22 years in the Airforce and National Guard.
“I also have two brothers that served in the military — one who is still active,” she said. “I have always had the military in my life. My dad was a part of Operation Iraqi Freedom and has been all over the world. I lived, breathed military.”
With Tyler about to leave for basic training, the couple married Monday night in front of immediate family. They decided to do a small ceremony now and plan for a more traditional ceremony where Natalle’s dad can walk her down the aisle later.
Tyler’s mom Tracy Keown said she is excited to watch her son and daughter-in-law’s journey.
“I feel pride in the fact that my son is willing to serve our country and protect our freedom,” Tracy Keown said. “I feel my heart breaking at the same time because I have not been away from him and I know he will be in training and then stationed in another state or could have orders in another country. But I can’t be selfish because this is his journey and his time to start his own family.”
Tyler will be away for basic training for three months. Upon graduation, he will return home for 10 days. Specialty training for his career in the military will last another four or five months. After that, Natalle sais she will get to be with her husband wherever he is stationed.
“We could end up in Japan for all we know,” she said. “We have no idea. It’s going to be great. We are going to get to travel which is something that I’ve always wanted to do and I still have the opportunity to finish my education. I’m excited; he’s excited. I love him, always have, always will.”
