Donna Kelce Just Shared The Sweetest Anecdote About Travis And Taylor
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The only thing more exciting than pictures of Taylor Swift and Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce: snaps of the pop star getting chummy with Travis’ mom, Donna. They're truly the cutest pics you'll ever see. Talk about major mom-of-boyfriend relationship goals! Now, rumor has it Mr. and Mrs. Swift and Mr. and Mrs. Kelce might be meeting at Travis' game for the very first time this week.
Travis’ parents, Donna and Ed Kelce, have raised not just one NFL superstar, but two—shoutout to Travis’ brother, Philadelphia Eagles player Jason Kelce.
So, who are Ed and Donna Kelce? (Spoiler alert: They’re no longer married but still close.) And how do they feel about Taylor? Luckily, the NFL star's mom spilled some deets on the TODAY Show and later in an interview with WSJ Magazine, and his dad also divulged some brand new observations about Tay.
Here’s what you need to know about Travis' parents.
Who are Travis Kelce’s parents?
Travis Kelce’s parents are Ed and Donna Kelce. The couple tied the knot in the late 1970s, and five years into their marriage, Donna gave birth to Jason, per People. About two years later, Travis joined the Kelce crew. They raised their kids together in Ohio, and have been huge supporters of their two sons throughout the years.
Donna is on Instagram and mostly posts about her sons. She's a proud mom, and I can't blame her! She recently told Us Weekly that she wears good luck charms to her sons' games in the form of literal charm bracelets that have either the Chiefs or the Eagles charms on them.
Ed is also on Instagram, and he shares plenty of posts about his kids and grandkids:
What has Travis' family said about Taylor?
Overall, the Kelce fam seems overwhelmed, but thrilled, with the attention they're receiving. Most recently, Ed Kelce said Taylor was a "very, very sweet, very charming down-to-Earth woman," and even shared some details about all the time Taylor has been spending in the Chiefs suite.
"We're sitting in the suite, she gets up and in the front room, she gets up to go get a drink or something and she starts picking up empty bottles, cans, plates that are scattered around," Ed told PEOPLE. "And I'm just thinking, I don't think she got the diva memo."
Donna Kelce, on the other hand, has remained pretty mum on all things "Taylor Swift," but a source recently told PEOPLE that Travis' mom thought she was "very sweet and down to earth."
Donna also appeared on the TODAY Show on Oct. 6 to promote her snack partnership with Kind Bar, and gave a bit of insight into her newfound celebrity.
"It's like every week is something new, like 'Really?'" Donna told TODAY. "I feel like I'm in some kind of an alternate universe."
At the time of the interview, Travis shared that his mom was trying to keep things on the DL during the early days of their relationship, per his WSJ. Magazine interview. Apparently, she was trying to "not to sound too enthusiastic" and instead, "came off underwhelmed," which was not her intention. Safe to say, Donna is definitely a fan.
“I can tell you this,” she told WSJ. Mag. “He’s happier than I’ve seen him in a long time…. God bless him, he shot for the stars!”
The NFL mom has been seen multiple times with Taylor at Chiefs games, and the women seemingly get along great, based on footage from each game.
When pressed for more details about what it was like to meet Taylor, Donna remained tight-lipped. "It was okay," she said politely of her time with Taylor in the boxes.
Donna has stayed firm in her attempts not to reveal details about Travis' budding relationship. "[My sons] are men now. They've got their own lives," she said. "And there isn't a man alive who is going to talk to their mom about their personal life. It's just not gonna happen."
Later, she added of the recent press whirlwind—and her many years in the spotlight from her sons' athletic achievements. "I love a thrill," she said.
And on the Oct. 4 episode of the New Heights podcast, even Travis said the NFL was "overdoing" coverage of Taylor at the games.
"I think it brings a little bit more to the atmosphere, brings a little bit more to what you’re watching," he said of the NFL's focus on his relationship. "But at the same time, they’re overdoing it a little bit for sure... especially my situation. I think they’re trying to have fun with it."
Jason, who brought up the Taylor topic on the episode of New Heights, has also made a few comments here and there.
On Sept. 20, Jason went on on Philadelphia’s WIP Morning Show and said this about the Taylor rumors: “It is hard to answer because I don’t really know a lot about what is happening in Travis’ love life. I try to, like, keep his business [as] his business and straight out of that world. Having said that. … I think it is 100 percent true.”
Jason later said on SportsRadio 94 WIP that he was being “sarcastic” with his previous comments. “I have gotten no inclination from Travis … I would say with this one, it definitely seems like he is going above and beyond to be a gentleman,” he said. “I think that he can probably handle both of those gears when necessary.”
And more recently, Travis' brother opened up about the whirlwind romance on NBC Sports. "On one hand, I'm happy for my brother that he seems to be in a relationship that he's excited about, that he is genuine about. But there's another end of it where it's like, ‘Man, this is a lot.'"
Donna Kelce was raised partially by her stepmother.
Donna has made several appearances on the Kelce brothers' podcast. On one episode, she opened up about her own background, according to PEOPLE. When Donna was just 10 years old, her mother died. And she credits her stepmother, Mary, known to the Kelce fam as "Grandma Murr," for getting she and her brother "back on track," according to the New Heights podcast.
Donna was reportedly the first in her family to graduate from college, per PEOPLE.
"By the grace of God, if we didn't have [Mary] I don't think we would have made it," Donna said on the episode. "She's just a lovely lady, I feel so fortunate to have been raised by her."
Sadly, Grandma Murr died earlier this year, per PEOPLE.
How did Donna and Ed Kelce meet?
They had quite the meet-cute, actually! Donna stopped in at a bar on the way to a first date with another man, and Ed just happened to also be there, the pair explained on an episode of New Heights.
Apparently, Ed was enjoying a drink after work, and Donna was pregaming her date (same, Donna, same!)
The pair talked at the bar for several hours, and then Ed took Donna to another bar later (after quickly stopping at his apartment to change clothes). "It was meant to be. It's just the way it was," Donna said.
Are they still married?
Ed and Donna are no longer married. The couple stayed together for nearly 25 years before calling it quits. But there's no bad blood between them now.
"I don't hate him. We're friends to this day. We get along great," Donna said on the podcast New Heights with Jason and Travis Kelce, per People. "We were like a tag team with you two. We got to do all sorts of fun things. When one of you had to go out of town, the other person would help with the other child. It was perfect."
In the new documentary Kelce, Travis and his brother, Jason Kelce, talk about how their parents slept in separate rooms growing up.
“I knew my mom and dad’s situation was different than other parents,” Travis said in the doc. “I would go have sleepovers at other houses and the other parents are staying in the room, and my parents didn’t stay in the same room.”
Ed also weighed in with this: “If we had split as we probably both would have preferred, that would have been a nightmare with the logistics, getting kids where they had to be and providing all the support.”
Where is Travis’ family from?
Travis’ family is from Cleveland Heights, Ohio. The name for the brothers’ podcast New Heights was inspired by their hometown.
How many kids do Donna and Ed have?
Donna and Ed only have two sons, Travis and Jason.
What does Donna do for work?
Donna has a background in finance, but she retired back in 2021, according to LinkedIn. On a recent episode of New Heights, her sons mentioned that she’s currently serving as an NFL ambassador.
Donna has built up a fanbase for herself thanks to her dedication to her sons, and she recently appeared in a Campbell’s soup ad alongside them:
What does Ed do for work?
Ed previously worked as a sales rep who sold products to steel manufacturers, according to the Los Angeles Times. He appears to be retired now.
Initially, Ed hoped to join the military in some capacity, but was rejected from the Army for a knee injury, and was sent home from Coast Guard bootcamp after he discovered he had Crohn's disease.
Do they have grandkids?
Yes! Jason has three daughters with his wife, Kylie: Wyatt, 3, Elliotte, 2, and Bennett, who is just seven months old. Donna posted a sweet profile of their little fam from People Magazine on her IG this week:
No kids on Travis' side... yet. And if he's thinking about settling down, only time will tell.
Donna and Ed are very dedicated to their sons' professions.
Donna attends nearly every Chiefs and Eagles game ATM. In fact, on October 1, she attended both the Eagles' game in Philadelphia and the Chiefs' game in New Jersey. And she's done it before.
In January 2022, she traveled over 1300 miles in one day to attend both of her sons' NFL wild card games, per PEOPLE. She started in Tampa for Jason's game against the Buccaneers, and then promptly traveled to Kansas City to see the Chiefs take the Pittsburgh Steelers.
And when Donna can't manage to basically be in two places at once, Ed steps in to make sure each Kelce brother has at least one parent rooting for them in the stands.
"We each try to be at one of the games," Ed told the Los Angeles Times. "Divide and conquer."
Stay tuned for more updates on these two, and Travis' sweet fam!
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