Longtime Burger King employee Kevin Ford recently celebrated his 27-year anniversary of working for the fast-food chain, and despite not having missed a day of work in that time, he was given a paltry goodie bag as a thank you for his dedication and loyalty.
Ford, 60, has worked at the McCarren Las Vegas Airport location of Burger King for almost three decades. When he announced his work anniversary to management recently, they scrambled to put together a thank you gift that included a movie ticket, a Starbucks coffee cup, a lanyard, some pens and candy and a string backpack.
A humble fellow, Ford shared a video to TikTok of him opening his backpack and the presents within, thanking his coworkers.
The video went mega-viral (more than two million views), with most people congratulating Ford and applauding the gracious way in which he accepted the gifts, but also asking: “Is that it?”
Now, the TikToker and loyal employee is being rewarded in a much bigger way.
According to Fortune, seeing the video’s success prompted Ford’s daughter, Sernya, to set up a GoFundMe page to help her dad raise $200 so he could go visit his grandkids.
“The man in that video is my father. He has worked at his job for 27 years and yes, he has never missed a day of work,” Sernya wrote on the GoFundMe page.
She noted that Ford started working at Burger King as a single dad to four children, and stayed with the job because it had a good health insurance package.
“My dad continues to work here because, though he does look young, he is coming up on retirement age and leaving would cost him his retirement,” she wrote, adding, “In no way are we asking for money or is he expecting any money but if anyone feels like blessing him he would love to visit his grandchildren.”
It didn’t take long to raise the $200 — in fact, the fundraiser is now in the six-figures, amassing more than $350,000 at the time of publication.
Actor David Spade was one of the contributors, donating five grand to the hard worker, reports TMZ.
But the good news doesn’t end there. Last week, The Today Show gave him a whopper of an offer, flying him out to New York to be reunited with his grandchildren on-air.
“I’ve been crying for all these days as it is and of course, I’m crying live on TV again seeing my grandbabies,” he told Fox11 of the joyous reunion.
He’s also been updating his TikTok with new videos, profusely thanking people for their support and generosity.
And despite his recent windfall, Ford says he’s not planning any vacation days or retirement anytime soon.
“You never know, it’s day to day, but I haven’t thought of anything to do with that money except to visit my grandkids for a while and maybe put some up for their college, but I’m not even thinking about that,” he added. “I’m just working.”