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Bio
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I am Khary Penebaker, a business leader and gun violence prevention advocate from Wisconsin. I built and led commercial roofing and sheet metal companies for more than two decades, ran for Congress in 2016, and served as a DNC Representative for Wisconsin from 2017 to 2023. My mother died by firearm suicide when I was 22 months old, and that loss is the root of my advocacy. My work has been covered by TIME, CNN, CBS News, HuffPost, and PBS Wisconsin.
I am Khary Penebaker, a business leader, gun violence prevention advocate, and father based in Wisconsin. I got into roofing at 18, started my own company out of my garage in 2002, and built it into one of the top firms in the state. I lost it in an involuntary Chapter 7 in 2011, climbed back, and went on to lead Roofed Right America from $5M to $35M in revenue with 180 people.
My mother died by firearm suicide when I was 22 months old. I did not learn the full truth of how she died until I was 18. That loss, and the years it took to make sense of it, is the root of my gun violence prevention work. I do not shy away from the hard parts of my story.
In 2016, I ran for Congress in Wisconsin's 5th District. From 2017 to 2023, I served as a DNC Representative for Wisconsin. I served as Board President of Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin C4 from 2021 to 2024 and am an Everytown for Gun Safety Wisconsin Fellow. I was also a Biden elector, which put me in the middle of the Wisconsin fake-electors case.
My work has been covered by TIME, CNN, CBS News, HuffPost, PBS Wisconsin, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, and Wisconsin Public Radio, among others. Today I am Division President at MetalMaster-RoofMaster.
Where my story has shown up
A few of the pieces that have covered my work and my advocacy. Most link straight to the source.
My essay on losing my mother to firearm suicide, and why I do this work.
A guest in the gun-violence section of the 2016 State of the Union coverage.
Coverage of the Wisconsin fake-electors case.
MaddowBlog on the Wisconsin fake-electors lawsuit, in which I am a named plaintiff.
Why we wear orange: writing on gun violence awareness.
Candidate statement, 5th Congressional District.
Also covered by the Washington Post, BBC News, USA Today, Vanity Fair, The Nation, and Wisconsin Public Radio, among others. See all coverage.
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Get in touch
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