A long-time Burger King employee who received a lackluster gift from his bosses after nearly 30 years of perfect attendance is now getting the last laugh as he prepares to make his entrepreneurial dreams come true, starting a good truck of his own.
Kevin Ford had the internet buzzing in 2022 when he shared a video of the gift bag he received for 27 years of service as a cook and cashier at a Burger King in the Las Vegas airport. Although he’d never missed a day of work, the contents of Ford’s gift bag looked like things that were randomly pulled from the supply closet, including pens, key chains, candy and a plastic Starbucks cup. We should add that they did throw one movie ticket in there too.
Although the internet was outraged at the company’s pitiful show of appreciation, Ford seemed genuinely appreciative. “I’m thankful for anything I get,” he told TMZ at the time. “But like most big companies, they’ve kind of lost touch with their workers.”
After the video, Ford’s daughter started a GoFundMe to help him raise money to make a trip to Texas to visit her and his grandchildren. The outpouring of generosity from strangers who had heard his story was unbelievable as supporters donated over $460,000. He even got a little help from a $5,000 gift from actor and comedian David Spade.
Ford is already putting the money to good use, using some to purchase a home in Nevada. But he’s also be preparing to give Burger King a little competition as he recently purchased a food truck complete with an oven and a fryer. According to TMZ, he plans to launch “K27Y” with his daughter, who was trained at the world-renowned Le Cordon Bleu, to sell hamburgers and eventually expanding to include Filipino dishes.
Ford is starting slow, with pop-up events in the area, but he hopes to be able to pursue his food truck business full-time before next summer when he will hit 30 years with Burger King.