A glance at the life of Chris Kyle, ex-Navy SEAL

NAVY RECORD

Kyle enlisted in the Navy in February 1999 and was discharged on November 2009, military records show. During that time, he served four tours in Iraq received 14 different awards and decorations, including two Silver Stars, five Bronze Stars with Valor, and two Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medals.

"I didn't do it for the money or the awards. I did it because I felt like it was something that needed to be done and it was honorable. I loved the guys," Kyle told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram in 2012.

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NICKNAMED 'THE DEVIL'

Kyle wrote a best-selling book published in January 2012 detailing his 150-plus kills of Iraqi insurgents from 1999 to 2009. Kyle said in the book that insurgents had put a $20,000 bounty on his head. The website for his security training company said the Iraqis feared him so much they nicknamed him al-Shaitan, or "The Devil."

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LOSS OF A HERO

Kyle's nonprofit, FITCO Cares, provides at-home fitness equipment for emotionally and physically wounded veterans. On Sunday, the organization's website read, "The Loss of a Hero," and said the foundation "will always carry the torch" for the military men and women.

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FAMILY MAN

Kyle was married to Taya Kyle and had two children.

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FROM COWBOY TO SHARPSHOOTER

The Dallas Morning News said Kyle grew up in Texas and spent much of his time riding horses and participating on the school rodeo team. The Star Telegram said he tried to join the Navy in 1996 but was rejected after a physical exam showed pins in his arm from a rodeo injury. Three years later, he was working on a ranch in Colorado when the Navy called and wanted to train him as a sniper.