Kenny Harmon first gained media attention via a tweet by her granddaughter Kelsey Harmon. In her pictured tweet, Kelsey stated that he prepared 12 burgers for his six grandchildren, but she’s the only one around to join her grandfather. Little did Kelsey know that the next 24 hours after her tweet would change his Sad Papaw’s life as the picture went viral and earned over 181,000 Retweets. A few days after, another of his grandkids made another tweet. This time, Brock Harmon decided to host a cookout for all the people touched by Sad Papaw’s story. They invited everyone to try Sad Papaw’s burger or buy the “I ate burger with Sad Papaw” t-shirt. At least 2,000 people turned up that Saturday, and the rest, as they say, is history.
Kenny Harmon: A Loving Grandfather
Before becoming an Internet celebrity, Kenny Harmon was born and raised in Oklahoma. For most of his life, Kenny lived an ordinary life. Just like his forefathers, Kenny grew up in the American Kentucky lifestyle. The Harmons have a rich history upon which Kenny is very proud. The family’s journey began with Peter Harmon and Mary Creekmore in Whitley County in 1844, then to Missouri, Kansas, and finally into Oklahoma for the Oklahoma Land Run in 1889, and unto the 1960s.
Kenny Harmon enjoyed a happy childhood and a farming experience. A retired ironworker from Norman, Oklahoma, Kenny Harmon worked hard to build his family. At seventy-one years old, Kenny happily spends his golden years with family and friends.
Although separated from his wife since 2008, Kenny remained a dutiful father to his children (three sons and six adopted children). Kenny is a loving grandpa to his six grandchildren Bryn (12), Brandon (17), Brody (18), Kelsey (19), Brock (20), Kaleb (21). He speaks highly of his grandkids and is very proud of their achievements. He particularly likes to take his grandchildren to sporting events (Kelsey is a Division II softball player while Brock is a college student who plays baseball). We also learned that trips to Disneyland were a tradition.
Unexpected fame and becoming an author
Shortly after becoming an instant celebrity, a writer named Charlotte Hopkins of Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, approached Kenny to see if he was interested in writing a book. Never in his wildest dreams did Kenny Harmon think of writing a book. Although as he began to take it all in, the first thing that came to his mind was his family and heritage.
“I knew that my Grandpa Harmon was in World War I, and I knew that my Great Grandpa Harmon had a, let’s say colorful history… If I was going to do it right and write about my family coming forward from the 1800s, their travels coming all the way to Oklahoma and then do something about me, it was going to require more than one book.” –Kenny Harmon.
While working on his book, Kenny discovered two of his cousins had been researching their family history for more than 20 years. Today, Kenny “Sad Papaw” Harmon is a proud author of three published books- The Early Years, Heritage, and Those Were the Days. In these amazing historical memoirs, Kenny tells the story of his family and pays tribute to American history and culture. All Sad Papaw books are a must-read for generations of Americans who want to see a glimpse of the American life and culture from the 1800s to the 1960s.
You can visit Kenny Harmon’s website today to know more about the author and his works. You can also purchase his books via Amazon.
