Man Who Grew Up Without A Father Makes Video Tutorials For Kids Needing Fatherly Figure

Aug 24, 2022

Wholesome has taken the form of Rob Kenney.

He's a dad of two who has been making headlines due to his YouTube channel, where he posts instructional videos to help kids growing up without dads. He does this by filming himself performing basic tasks that you'd usually ask your dad for help with, such as how to iron a dress shirt, how to change a tire, how to shave and more. 

Kenney had a difficult childhood growing up. According to the Washington Post, his dad gained custody of the eight kids following his parents’ divorce. However, Kenney’s dad left them all behind when he met another woman and declared that he was “done raising kids.”

Despite this, Kenney went on to accomplish a lot in his life, landing a job in sales and starting a beautiful family of his own. “I genuinely think he was put on Earth to be a dad,” Kenney’s daughter Kristine Ponten said.

So it was only fitting that the Bellevue, Washington, resident decided to post videos of himself performing common tasks for anyone that may need some advice from a fatherly figure. Kenney’s channel came to fruition back in April 2020 and has continued to flourish ever since. Kenney’s YouTube channel gained even more traction when a user on Reddit posted about him on the r/Adulting forum, helping his subscriber number grow steadily.

Anyone looking for some extra guidance on how to fix a household appliance or even make cinnamon rolls now has the perfect person to turn to.

In his videos, Kenney talks viewers through the tasks step-by-step so it's easy to follow and understand. What makes them even better is the dad jokes that he would include here and there. In “How to fix most running toilets,” Kenney started by saying that his daughter called him saying that her toilet "won't stop running." "I thought for a second, it can't be that fast, why don't you catch it?" he jested.

People have been showing their appreciation for Kenney everywhere on the internet; some have even commented that they were moved to tears watching his videos. One person wrote:

"The way you're saying 'pay attention to this' (is) totally (a) dad vibe. But you're perfect. Not condescending at all like some father figure types while teaching. Great video and subscribed. You seem like a great dad."

A man named Chris Hart went to Facebook to express his gratitude toward Kenney. “What an amazing, selfless thing to do for someone else,” he said. “It’s stories like these that give me hope for humanity.

At first, Kenney was taken aback by the number of people coming to his channel. “It was terrifying,” he told the Washington Post. “At first, I didn’t look at it as a great thing.” He continued, “It breaks my heart that so many people need my channel.”

But Kenney has been equally grateful to his subscribers for their endless support of his video-making. In May 2020, he uploaded a video thanking everyone for leaving him such kind messages and watching his heartfelt videos. Kenney’s account is still going strong, as he has garnered over 4.08 million subscribers and plenty of video views. 

Rob Kenney helps everyone who needs DIY tips, not just people who don't have dads. Do you agree that the world needs more dads like him? Let us know, and be sure to pass this on to your loved ones to spread the word about Kenney.