Kevin Ford is a Burger King employee who went viral Monday over a video of him opening a “goodie bag” that he received from his peers to celebrate 27 years of working for the company without ever missing a day.
Ford, 54, went viral due to his gratitude displayed in the clip that shows him naming out the items he received, which included one movie ticket, a chocolate, mints, a lanyard and a few other trinckets.
Despite Ford appreciating the gesture from his co-workers, the online community was appaled to see the loyal employee did not get much more than what one would receive at a job fair.
Burger King confirmed that HMS Host, the company from which the restaurant hires, was the one who provided Ford the goodie bag.
“The Burger King brand and its many franchisees nationwide are committed to recognizing and celebrating the achievements of the thousands of people serving across a wide range of roles,” the statement read. “Following review with this location’s franchisee, we’ve learned that this video depicts a Team Member in receipt of a peer-to-peer reward in recognition of a short-term positive performance/experience.”
The restaurant also stated that it has an employee recognition program in place that offers monetary awards and tenure recognition.
Burger King employee gets GoFundMe account
After the internet showed support for the viral Burger King employee, his daughter set up a GoFundMe account for him that quickly gained traction.
The account had an initial goal of $27,000 and has now garnered over $50,000 in donations, including $5,000 from comedian David Spade.
Spade joked that Ford should wait until he reaches 30 years of perfect attendance to finally take a day off and the two had a quick chat that the BK worker will cherish forever.
Ford was skeptical when his daughter first informed him that someone named “David Spade” had donated $5,000 but was immensely grateful to see that it was really one of his favorite comedians donating the funds.
“I can’t repay her, you know? Because she is why I do everything – her and my other daughters and now my grandkids,” Ford said. “I really can’t put into words how much I love my family.”
Ford, who lives in Las Vegas, wants to use the donations to visit his daughter and grandchildren in Texas, and also hopes to purchase a Ford Hybrid.
Marca
