Kevin was born in Wichita, Kansas, to parents who overcame significant challenges that shaped his values.

 

His father, born in extreme poverty in the eastern prairies of Colorado, started life being born in a chicken coop. He endured the Great Depression and Dust Bowl until his family's fortunes improved through Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal. After graduating high school at 20 in May 1941, he volunteered for the Coast Guard. He served bravely on the frontline beaches of Sicily, Salerno, Normandy, Southern France, and Okinawa during World War II.

 

His mother, while slightly better off, but also faced adversity. Born in Fort Scott, Kansas, to a locomotive engineer father. As the fifth of seven children during the Great Depression, her family relied on coal spillage for heat and cooking fuel. After high school, she contributed to the war effort by working at Boeing Aircraft, building B-29 bombers.

 

After the war, his parents married, and his father became a Locomotive Engineer. Kevin is the youngest of five children, growing up in a middle-class family that values service. Inspired by his oldest brother, who served in Vietnam, he saw his parents actively engage in the community, including supporting political campaigns and aiding troops.

 

Upon graduating high school, he followed his father’s and grandfather's career path by starting work for the railroad as a locomotive fireman at 18. He quickly ascended to become one of the youngest locomotive engineers in U.S. history. From 1980 to 1989, he worked in Wichita, holding a union leadership role for the United Transportation Union, Local 1227. He moved to Chickasha due to a railroad merger and joined the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, Local 523. In 1994 he continued advancing his career, becoming Senior Manager of various departments. He was dismissed from management in 2017 after he had conscientious objections to unethical hiring practices, returning as a locomotive engineer in Chickasha before retiring in 2022. Throughout his career, he maintained his union membership and is a proud card-carrying retired member today.

 

Alarmed by the rising MAGA influence after January 6, he founded Coffee with Democrats, Inc., a nonprofit aimed at social media engagement. However, due to declining interest after Twitter’s acquisition, the organization dissolved by November 2024.

 

He met his wife, Joann, in 1982, and after a brief courtship, they were engaged and married early the next spring. They consider themselves incredibly blessed, having enjoyed 42 years of marriage with three children and eight grandchildren. While he worked for the railroad, Joann simultaneously built a career in education after initially being a bank teller and stay-at-home mom. Today, she works at the University of Oklahoma.