Port Richmond resident Kevin J. Wilson is a self-proclaimed “regular guy,” and he wants people to know that. More importantly, he wants to inspire others and help those who have experienced loss in their lives.

  Wilson’s first book, “Table for One”, is a poignant memoir about the power of our memories and the difficulty of losing those whom we love. It is not, Wilson stresses, a restaurant book. “Table for One” will be available in bookstores on Monday, December 19th.

  The youngest of six children, Kevin J. Wilson was born in Germany. He and his family moved frequently during the 1970s due to his father’s job as an Army officer. In fact, Kevin was enrolled for a time in a school in South Korea. The Wilsons finally settled down in the Kensington section of Philadelphia. Kevin’s parents eventually separated, and his father did not play a part in his children’s lives. Needless to say, the Wilsons were not well-off.

  Kevin graduated from Northeast Catholic High School in 1990. He has worked numerous odd jobs throughout his life to support himself and his family. Kevin, for a time, lived in New Jersey and New York before moving back to Philadelphia to care for his ailing mother. In 2011, she passed away.

  While coping with the loss of his mother, Kevin began frequenting restaurants all over the city. It was, he claims, an attempt to reconnect with his deceased mother by trying to find meals as good as the ones she used to make for him and his siblings when they were young. He started an online blog on which he reviewed the restaurant’s’ food and the overall dining experiences. For various reasons, he eventually had to shut the website down. In December 2013, Kevin’s sister Donna, who had been helping him battle the severe depression their mother’s passing had caused, died of a massive heart attack. Several days later, Kevin’s comatose brother Stretch was taken off life support.

  Kevin’s depression worsened. Looking for a creative outlet, Kevin contacted numerous publishers and proposed writing a restaurant book. 17 publishers rejected his idea. An acquaintance finally suggested that Kevin instead write a memoir that focused more on his personal experiences and emotional hardships. As luck would have it, Kevin soon after bumped into a local writer on the bus who agreed to help him organize his thoughts into a book. Voila: “Table for One”.

  “The goal of the book is to inspire others who are going through what I went through and tell them that they can have loss and keep moving,” Wilson said. “That’s the whole point we’re trying to get across.”

  Kevin has already begun working on his next writing project, the details of which he is not at liberty to divulge. He has also expressed interest in speaking publicly about grief and coping with the loss of loved ones. 840-WWDB-AM enjoyed “Table for One” so much that they offered Kevin a weekly radio show called “Dining on a Dime.” That project is still in the preliminary stages.   

  “Table for One” is now available online. If you wish to pick up a physical copy, stop by Port Richmond Books, JP Tee’s, the Cookbook Stall or Mike’s Steaks.  •