About Matt Kailey
Lived 1955 – 2014 (aged 59). Matt Kailey was an American writer, activist and social worker.
Matthew Scott "Matt" Kailey (March 17, 1955 – May 18, 2014) was a trans male author, educator, and transgender activist.
Biography Kailey was born in 1955 in Omaha, Nebraska to Shirley and George "Rod" Kailey. He earned a BA in Sociology and Psychology at Iowa State University and an MA in Education from the University of Missouri-Kansas City. He later moved to Colorado and began a career as a social caseworker.
Kailey began his female-to-male transition at the age of 42, transitioning from a straight woman to a gay trans man. After leaving social work, he became a writer for Out Front Colorado, one of the country's oldest LGBT publications. In 2007 he became its managing editor, making Kailey the highest-ranking trans journalist of an LGBT publication.
Kailey wrote a guidebook, My Child is Transgender: 10 Tips for Parents of Adult Trans Children. He wrote an award-winning blog, Tranifesto, spoke at numerous conferences, and offered workplace training on transgender issues. He also taught courses in psychology, human sexuality, and transgender studies at Red Rocks Community College and Metropolitan State University of Denver.
Kailey died in his sleep of heart failure on May 18, 2014.
Books Our Day Will Come, 2004, iUniverse, Inc., ; Just Add Hormones: An Insider's Guide to the Transsexual Experience, 2005, Beacon Press, Focus on the Fabulous: Colorado GLBT Voices (editor), 2007, Johnson Books, Teeny Weenies and Other Short Subjects, 2012, Outskirts Press, My Child is Transgender: 10 Tips for Parents of Adult Trans Children, 2012, Tranifesto Publishing
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Important facts
People in Matt Kailey's life
Named in this biography and alive at the same time
Contemporaries
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Frequently asked questions
Who was Matt Kailey?
American writer and activist
When was Matt Kailey born?
Matt Kailey was born on 17 March 1955 in Omaha.
When did Matt Kailey die?
Matt Kailey died on 18 May 2014 in Denver.
What was Matt Kailey's occupation?
Matt Kailey was a writer, activist and social worker.
What nationality was Matt Kailey?
Matt Kailey was American.
Sources & further reading
Cite this page
APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Matt Kailey. https://biography.guide/matt-kailey/
MLA: "Matt Kailey." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/matt-kailey/.
Chicago: "Matt Kailey." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/matt-kailey/.
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