The Nevada Burger King cook who received a measly gift from management for his nearly 30 years of fast food service without ever missing a day is starting a new venture in the culinary industry.
Kevin Ford plans to open a food truck with his daughter after he received more than $400,000 from a fundraising campaign over his viral story, according to TMZ.
Ford struck internet fame in 2022 when his Burger King supervisors at the Las Vegas McCarran International Airport celebrated his 27th anniversary with the fast food joint with a random assortment of gifts.
Ford was handed a backpack with a movie ticket, a Starbucks cup and a mix of candy and chocolate for his nearly three decades of service.
His daughter, Seryna, wasn’t so pleased with her father’s bosses and created a GoFundMe to show her love for the man she says helped put his four daughters through high school and college because of his dedication to the chain.
“He originally began working at this job as a single father when he gained custody of me and my older sister 27 years ago,” Seryna wrote back in 2022.
Kevin Ford, Burger King employee who gained fame for receiving a mediocre goodie bag in recognition of his 27 yrs of unwavering work, achieved a significant milestone. He purchased a house funded by GoFundMe campaign his daughter initiated following his viral moment last summer. pic.twitter.com/F1ZFLOqiyo
— theJasmineBRAND (@thejasminebrand) January 2, 2024
“Then as our family grew and he remarried, he continued to work there because of the amazing health insurance that was provided through this employer because it was unionized. This got all four of his daughters through high school and college with full healthcare coverage.”
The fundraiser has since made $459,800, well over the initial $200 goal.
Ford purchased the black and silver food truck from China for roughly $20,000. The kitchen-on-wheels comes fully equipped with the works including an oven and fryer, the outlet reported.
The exterior is adorned with a giant “K27Y,” a tribute to his viral fame “Kevin 27 years.”
The Burger King employee and his daughter, who was trained at the French culinary school Le Cordon Bleu, will begin with a basic menu consisting of hamburgers and hot dogs.
Ford told the outlet he wanted to add Filipino dishes to the menu to honor his Filipina fiancée.
As he begins his entrepreneurship, Ford remains a dedicated worker at Burger King but plans to retire by May 2025, his 30th anniversary with the company, he told the outlet.
The purchase of the new mobile dining establishment comes months after Ford bought his first home thanks to the money raised through the GoFundMe.
He closed on the Pahrump, Nevada home on Dec. 13, 2023, paying $177,000 for the 846-square-foot, three-bedroom, two-bath house, TMZ previously reported.
“I wanted to show you something, something you made possible, you did for me, just a hardworking guy,” Ford said in a video posted to Instagram on Dec. 29. “Now I know it needs some work, gonna cut off the haters already, I know it’s not a mansion but it’s mine.”
K27Y plans to start out small doing pop-ups around the area he purchased his home.
His grand opening is set for October at a local Home Depot.
What we have here folks is the typical behavior of corporate America.
First, I’m not sure how this guy went 27yrs without missing a day of work! That is incredible and he should be shown some level of appreciation for that.
However this is corporate America and corporations/ businesses don’t give a rats ass about their employees, it’s a what have you done for me lately mentality, how much more have you produced, how much more time-effort-energy have you put in- how much more money have you made for us. And oh by the way, everyone is replaceable. Like the rest of the businesses and corporations in this country this story holds a common theme…next man up, you’re not that important to us.
With that many years of experience, he should have been made a regional manager for BK years ago. They fucked up.
There is a real lot of people just like this guy only they were not on TMZ and their daughter did not make them a fundraising campaign
Now this is a real hard working American. Shame on Burger King. Are you kidding me? A backpack with a movie ticket? A Starbucks cup? Really? Are you telling me that Burger King thinks so little of a devoted hard reliable worker that that is all they could muster up? It shows you what fools are running these places. When you have a guy like this working for you, you reward him with a substantial gift to show your apprecuation. Congratulations to him and thanks to his daughter.