• Matthew Gilmour is a former missionary of the Mormon faith and an activist, known for being the husband of Elizabeth Smart.
• His parents were music teachers, and his father passed away in 2008 due to cancer.
• Matthew and Elizabeth met in Paris on a Mormon mission trip in 2009, and tied the knot in 201•
• Elizabeth is an activist and advocate against crimes and abuse, and works as a commentator for ABC News.
• Matthew's net worth and salary is unknown, while Elizabeth's is estimated at $1.7 million.
Contents
Matthew Gilmour is a former missionary of the Mormon faith, and an activist, also well known for being the husband of former abductee Elizabeth Smart.
Early life, family and educational background
Matthew Gilmour was born in 1991, in Aberdeen, Scotland to Kay and Stewart Gilmour. He has one brother, Kyle and three sisters: Chloe, Bethany and Ashlea. His parents were music teachers at a secondary school during his childhood. His mother was the Head of Music at St. Machar Academy while his father also played the flugelhorn in a brass band.
Devastatingly, his father passed away in 2008 at the age of 48 due to Cancer, after which his mother raised funds for CLAN Cancer Support.
Career
Matthew is an Elder of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, in other words he is a Mormon missionary. He worked at the Paris branch of his church where he would eventually meet his future spouse. He has a Facebook page of the same name, but the aims of the mission are unclear.
He is also involved in activism alongside his wife, and supports her advocacy for victims of child trafficking and abuse, and the Elizabeth Smart Foundation.
Relationships
Meeting With Spouse Elizabeth Smart
The couple first met in Paris on a Mormon mission trip in 2009. Elizabeth was very impressed with him and they began dating. Matthew revealed in an interview that he didn’t recognize Elizabeth as the former abductee from the headlines due to her confidence and personality. After their initial meeting, the two met each other in their respective hometowns, Aberdeen and Salt Lake City. Three years later in 2012, he proposed to her near her home. He recalls, ‘I just said very simply, Elizabeth Ann Smart, will you marry me? And then, I wasn’t nervous.’
The same year the couple tied the knot in a private ceremony on the shores of Hawaii. The newlyweds were blessed with their first daughter in 2015, whom they named Chloe. In April 2017, they welcomed a new addition to their family, James. The final addition to their family came in November 2018, and ishe was named Olivia.
Who is Elizabeth Smart?
Elizabeth Ann Smart was born on the 3rd of November, 1987, in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA, to Edward and Lois Smart. She was brought up as a Mormon alongside her five siblings, Edward, William, Charles, Andrew and Mary-Katherine.
She had a relatively normal childhood up until the 5th of June 2002 when she was abducted at knife point from her bedroom she shared with her younger sister in their family home. Her abductors were Brian David Mitchell and his wife Wanda Ileen Barzee who kept her tied up, raped her daily, drugged her and threatened to kill her if she attempted an escape. Brian believed himself to be a prophet of a bizarre religious belief, and tried to convince Elizabeth of the same. Her younger sister who pretended to be asleep during the abduction happened to remember the man as a former worker at their home. His sketches were distributed and featured on television.
The abduction and torture went on for nine months until she was rescued by police officers on the 12th of March,2003, after two witnesses recognized a disguised Smart on the street with her abductors from an episode of “America’s Most Wanted” and promptly informed the police. She was just a few miles from her home in Utah at the time of the rescue. Years later after a long trial, Brian was found guilty to the charges and sentenced to life imprisonment while his wife was sentenced to 15 years in prison for her role in the abduction. She was released from prison in 2019 and had to register as a sex offender while regularly attending classes
After her return home, Elizabeth completed her middle school studies at Bryant Middle School, and matriculated from East High School in her hometown. She went on to graduate with a Bachelor of Music in harp performance from Brigham Young University. After her education, she began a career in activism – she founded the Elizabeth Smart Foundation in 2011 which has the aim of educating children about crimes and to support the Internet Crimes against Children Task Force, as well as stopping human trafficking. In the same year, she was awarded with the Diane von Furstenberg Award and she became a missing persons commentator for ABC News. The next year she was awarded with the Siena Medal Award by Theta Phi Alpha National Fraternity.
We choose who we are, and happiness is within reach for each of us. Reclaim your life and move forward with hope!https://t.co/RZ76pXok5i pic.twitter.com/Ez18pzKbnW
— Elizabeth Smart (@ElizSmart) February 24, 2018
In 2014, Smart testified in favor of a bill before the Utah State House of Representatives, that would allow Utah schoolchildren to be taught training on sexual abuse prevention. Her life has inspired many non-fiction books and films such as, “My Story”, “In Plain Sight: The Startling Truth Behind the Elizabeth Smart Investigation”, “The Elizabeth Smart Story” and “I am Elizabeth Smart” amongst others. She released the books “Never Give Up” and “Where There’s Hope: Healing, Moving Forward” with St. Martin’s Press. Since then she has remained an activist and advocate against crimes and abuse, and has shared her story to inspire others like her to live freely.
Appearance
Matthew is a dark brown haired, blue-eyed male of Caucasian ethnicity and British nationality. As of 2020, he is 29 years of age – his weight and height are not known. He does not enjoy being in the spotlight and so doesn’t have any known social media accounts. His wife on the other hand has a huge following on her social media accounts such as Instagram, where she posts details of her family and professional life.
Net worth and salary
Matthew’s net worth and salary is currently unknown, as notionally income goes to his church, while his wife earns a fair amount of money as a famous activist, and commentator for ABC News. Her net worth is estimated at a handsome $1.7 million.
