Stephanie Hayden and Kris Ford from Red Jacket Firearms in Baton Rouge and the hit Discovery Channel TV show "Sons of Guns" will be at this year's Sportsman's Expo in Shreveport.

The husband and wife will bring their love of firearms and expertise to the Shreveport Convention Center, July 19-21.

Stephanie Hayden
Discovery Channel
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Stephanie Hayden grew up learning about hunting and the outdoors from her dad, Will. For her 18th birthday, Will made her his partner and the business manager for Red Jacket. Now 28, she is known as the brains behind the Red Jacket operation. She manages the day-to-day business including the vast amount of paperwork involved in purchasing firearms, and keeps the orders running smoothly. However, Stephanie isn't just an administrator. She knows her guns too. In fact, she probably knows as much or more than many of the walk-in customers. Her favorite weapon depends on what she's shooting at the time, but she's fond of anything that Red Jacket builds — particularly the Suppressed AK-47.

Even though when it comes to spare time she's quick to say: "Welcome to Red Jacket, we don't have spare time," she does, however, manage to squeeze in a few vacations and likes to rock climb, horseback ride, write and take photographs.

One passion that has been growing recently is her support for Voice of the Wetlands, a volunteer group dedicated to the preservation of the wetlands in southern Louisiana. In 2011 Stephanie married Kris Ford in a private ceremony in Las Vegas. While they both have full time work at Red Jacket, they also share a keen interest in advocating for gun safety and weapons training.

Kris Ford
Discovery Channel
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Despite coming from a family of hunters and gun enthusiasts, Kris Ford didn't consider himself a gun person. That all changed in 2009.

That year, Kris met Will's daughter Stephanie Hayden at a party. Kris was in need of a job and Stephanie offered him an apprenticeship at Red Jacket. He started out by sweeping floors and under Will's tutelage learned how to build guns from “weapon-grade steel.” While Kris was building guns in the shop, his friendship with Stephanie grew from casual to lifelong. He married Stephanie in Las Vegas and Will welcomed his transition from employee to son in law.

Kris shares Stephanie’s love of the Louisiana wetlands and likes to write and play music. However, he says that his main job will always be "happily saying 'Yes Sir!' to Will."

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