Sadly, Kenny Rogers recently passed away at the age of 81. He left behind his widow, Wanda, who was actually his fifth wife. He also had five children from his other marriages, including twin teenage boys with Wanda. The twin boys, Jordan and Justin, are currently fifteen years old.
Kenny and Wanda met in the ’90s while Wanda was working at a restaurant in Atlanta. Kenny was there to meet a blind date, but he ended up falling for Wanda! He called the restaurant and asked about her a few days later. Wanda actually thought her co-workers were playing a trick on her, but she reluctantly called him back. The rest is history.
Learn more about Kenny’s widow Wanda
The couple got married in 1997 and have been going strong ever since. From Kenny’s old photos on social media, it seems like he was a family man and loved to take his kids on tour with him. However, it wasn’t always so easy. When Wanda and Kenny first started dating, her parents were not happy.
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There was a 28-year age gap between Kenny and Wanda. Wanda’s parents are actually a few years younger than Kenny was! So, at first, they were a little uneasy about the relationship, as any parents would be. He assured them how much he loved their daughter and as the years went on, things improved and Kenny said before he passed that they became best friends.
Kenny had four divorces in the past and that meant sometimes paying a pretty penny. For example, he paid his ex-wife Marianne Gordon $60 million! But, he admitted that she deserved every penny. He was with Marianne during the time he was a member of the band First Edition. When the band broke up, he was broke too. She stood by him during hard times.
We sat down with Kenny Rogers once and he revealed while he missed being on the road, he loved spending more time with his teen twin boys. He said, “They keep me very busy!” Kenny’s kids are Carole, 61; Kenny Jr., 55; Chris, 38; and 15-year-old twin sons Justin and Jordan. We bet his family misses him dearly. We sure do!