Autism Be Damned My Boy Can Work A Grill

2020Catchphrase / phrasal template / redraw trendsemi-active

Also known as: Autism Be Damned

Autism Be Damned My Boy Can Work A Grill originated from a June 2020 Facebook post by Eddie Gomez featuring his autistic son Tristen grilling chicken wings, spawning a viral phrasal template and redraw trend.

"Autism Be Damned My Boy Can Work A Grill" is a catchphrase and exploitable meme template that originated from a June 2020 Facebook post by Eddie Gomez showing his autistic son Tristen grilling chicken wings. The post went massively viral, earning over 100,000 reactions, and spawned both a fan art redraw trend and a snowclone phrase format where people swap in different skills and fandoms.

wholesome memescatchphrase memessnowclone memesfacebook memesfather son memes

Overview

The meme centers on a Facebook post showing a young man named Tristen grilling chicken wings on a small Oklahoma Joe smoker, captioned with the proud declaration "Autism be damned my boy can work a grill." The original photos show Tristen smiling while tending to the grill, clearly enjoying himself1. What started as a father's wholesome brag in a barbecue enthusiast group became a viral sensation, then morphed into two distinct meme formats: a redraw trend where fan artists insert fictional characters into the grilling scene, and a snowclone template where the phrase structure gets remixed for different contexts3.

On June 23, 2020, Facebook user Eddie Gomez posted four photos of his 18-year-old son Tristen grilling chicken wings to the Oklahoma Joe's Owners Club, a Facebook group for smoker and grill enthusiasts3. The caption read simply: "Autism be damned my boy can work a grill." Tristen is on the autism spectrum, and Eddie had purchased a new Oklahoma Barrel Smoker that Tristen took to immediately1.

Eddie told The Dad that Tristen "took to it like a duck to water" when he let his son take the lead on a fairly simple recipe1. The father and son had been looking for new activities together during COVID-19 shutdowns, which had closed off their usual outings to the zoo, aquarium, and Disneyland1. The post picked up steam fast within the grilling community, earning roughly 109,000 reactions and 130,000 shares over its first two years3.

Origin & Background

Platform
Facebook (Oklahoma Joe's Owners Club group)
Key People
Eddie Gomez, Tristen Gomez
Date
2020

On June 23, 2020, Facebook user Eddie Gomez posted four photos of his 18-year-old son Tristen grilling chicken wings to the Oklahoma Joe's Owners Club, a Facebook group for smoker and grill enthusiasts. The caption read simply: "Autism be damned my boy can work a grill." Tristen is on the autism spectrum, and Eddie had purchased a new Oklahoma Barrel Smoker that Tristen took to immediately.

Eddie told The Dad that Tristen "took to it like a duck to water" when he let his son take the lead on a fairly simple recipe. The father and son had been looking for new activities together during COVID-19 shutdowns, which had closed off their usual outings to the zoo, aquarium, and Disneyland. The post picked up steam fast within the grilling community, earning roughly 109,000 reactions and 130,000 shares over its first two years.

How It Spread

The post's first major repost came on June 27, 2020, when the Facebook page Golden Gloves Cuisine shared the image, pulling in about 1,800 reactions and 1,200 shares. A month later, on July 28, 2020, Redditor My_Memes_Will_Cure_U posted a screenshot of Eddie's Facebook post to r/MadeMeSmile, where it earned roughly 46,200 upvotes. That same day, iFunny user CockOfDoom reposted the screenshot, picking up around 19,500 smiles.

The comments across platforms reflected a mix of wholesome support and broader discussion about autism awareness. iFunny commenters noted things like "Nothing can stop a man from loving his grill" and "He looks so proud of his chicken," while others used the post to push back against misconceptions about autism.

The response overwhelmed Eddie. He received messages from people in Scotland, Australia, and across Europe. Several companies sent care packages with sauces, rubs, and one even shipped a large quantity of Wagyu meat. A group member set up a GoFundMe so Tristen could buy a new pellet smoker, and the fundraiser hit its goal in just four hours. Eddie donated the extra money to an autism awareness charity in Tristen's name.

By May 2021, the meme had evolved beyond the original wholesome post into fan art territory. Twitter user malefujoshi tweeted an image of Kaworu Nagisa from Neon Genesis Evangelion paired with the catchphrase. On September 21, 2021, Twitter user NadaHarmonia created a redraw inserting Deltarune character Spamton G. Spamton into the template, earning over 310 likes. Then on December 28, 2021, Tumblr user malama-art drew Jotaro Kujo from JoJo's Bizarre Adventure manning the grill, with the caption rewritten to look like it was posted by Joseph Joestar to "New York Joe's Owner Club." That post pulled in roughly 10,900 notes over nine months.

The snowclone format also took off separately. The earliest known variation came on April 9, 2021, when Twitter user s4m31p4n tweeted "Autism be damned my boy can suck and fuck," earning over 240 likes. But the format really exploded on May 29, 2022, when Twitter user _glassduster posted "autism be damned my boy knows his trains," which racked up roughly 35,000 likes in four months. That tweet kicked off a wave of viral iterations through mid-2022, including "Autism Be Damned That boy can tweets" by Twitter user vsshole on June 3, 2022, which got about 3,500 likes.

How to Use This Meme

The meme works in two main formats:

Redraw format: Artists typically recreate the original Facebook post layout, replacing Tristen with a fictional character at the grill. The caption gets modified so the "poster" is another character from the same franchise, and the Facebook group name often gets a punny makeover (like "New York Joe's Owner Club" for the JoJo version). The key elements are the grill, the proud caption, and the fake Facebook UI framing.

Snowclone format: Take the structure "Autism be damned my boy can [skill]" and swap in any activity. The humor usually comes from the specific skill being something stereotypically associated with autistic interests (trains, specific fandoms) or something absurdly unrelated to the original grilling context. The format works best when the replacement skill is unexpected or oddly specific.

Cultural Impact

The original post sparked a genuine outpouring of support for autism awareness. Eddie used the unexpected attention to advocate for understanding, telling The Dad: "Something I would like all people to understand about Tristen and all children like him is that they are different but want the same thing we all do. To be accepted, have fun, and to be involved". His message that autistic people can accomplish anything "with a little patience and a little more guidance" reached audiences worldwide.

The meme's evolution into a fandom redraw trend gave it a second life entirely separate from its wholesome origins. The template became a way for fan communities to celebrate their favorite characters while keeping the original post's warm, proud energy intact. The snowclone variants, meanwhile, took on a more irreverent tone, often played for laughs within autistic and neurodivergent online communities who embraced the phrase as a self-referential joke.

Fun Facts

Eddie's usual activities with Tristen before COVID included swimming at their local pool, sometimes for hours a day.

When Tristen was younger, his school suspected he might be hearing impaired. After a month of testing, Eddie's response was: "I told you, that boy can hear an ice cream truck at 3 miles".

The GoFundMe for Tristen's new pellet smoker hit its goal in just four hours.

Eddie says he's "learned way more from my son than I have ever taught him".

The JoJo's Bizarre Adventure redraw cleverly changed the Facebook group name from "Oklahoma Joe's" to "New York Joe's Owner Club" to match the franchise's setting.

Derivatives & Variations

Evangelion redraw

(May 2021): Kaworu Nagisa placed in the grilling scene, posted by Twitter user malefujoshi[3].

Spamton G. Spamton redraw

(September 2021): Deltarune's Spamton at the grill, by Twitter user NadaHarmonia[3].

Jotaro Kujo / JoJo's redraw

(December 2021): Jotaro grilling with a fake Joseph Joestar caption, by Tumblr user malama-art, earning ~10,900 notes[3].

"My boy knows his trains" snowclone

(May 2022): The most viral text-only variant by Twitter user _glassduster, with ~35,000 likes[3].

"That boy can tweets" snowclone

(June 2022): Part of the mid-2022 snowclone wave by Twitter user vsshole[3].

Frequently Asked Questions

Autism Be Damned My Boy Can Work A Grill

2020Catchphrase / phrasal template / redraw trendsemi-active

Also known as: Autism Be Damned

Autism Be Damned My Boy Can Work A Grill originated from a June 2020 Facebook post by Eddie Gomez featuring his autistic son Tristen grilling chicken wings, spawning a viral phrasal template and redraw trend.

"Autism Be Damned My Boy Can Work A Grill" is a catchphrase and exploitable meme template that originated from a June 2020 Facebook post by Eddie Gomez showing his autistic son Tristen grilling chicken wings. The post went massively viral, earning over 100,000 reactions, and spawned both a fan art redraw trend and a snowclone phrase format where people swap in different skills and fandoms.

wholesome memes catchphrase memes snowclone memes facebook memes father son memes

Overview

The meme centers on a Facebook post showing a young man named Tristen grilling chicken wings on a small Oklahoma Joe smoker, captioned with the proud declaration "Autism be damned my boy can work a grill." The original photos show Tristen smiling while tending to the grill, clearly enjoying himself. What started as a father's wholesome brag in a barbecue enthusiast group became a viral sensation, then morphed into two distinct meme formats: a redraw trend where fan artists insert fictional characters into the grilling scene, and a snowclone template where the phrase structure gets remixed for different contexts.

On June 23, 2020, Facebook user Eddie Gomez posted four photos of his 18-year-old son Tristen grilling chicken wings to the Oklahoma Joe's Owners Club, a Facebook group for smoker and grill enthusiasts. The caption read simply: "Autism be damned my boy can work a grill." Tristen is on the autism spectrum, and Eddie had purchased a new Oklahoma Barrel Smoker that Tristen took to immediately.

Eddie told The Dad that Tristen "took to it like a duck to water" when he let his son take the lead on a fairly simple recipe. The father and son had been looking for new activities together during COVID-19 shutdowns, which had closed off their usual outings to the zoo, aquarium, and Disneyland. The post picked up steam fast within the grilling community, earning roughly 109,000 reactions and 130,000 shares over its first two years.

Origin & Background

Platform
Facebook (Oklahoma Joe's Owners Club group)
Key People
Eddie Gomez, Tristen Gomez
Date
2020

On June 23, 2020, Facebook user Eddie Gomez posted four photos of his 18-year-old son Tristen grilling chicken wings to the Oklahoma Joe's Owners Club, a Facebook group for smoker and grill enthusiasts. The caption read simply: "Autism be damned my boy can work a grill." Tristen is on the autism spectrum, and Eddie had purchased a new Oklahoma Barrel Smoker that Tristen took to immediately.

Eddie told The Dad that Tristen "took to it like a duck to water" when he let his son take the lead on a fairly simple recipe. The father and son had been looking for new activities together during COVID-19 shutdowns, which had closed off their usual outings to the zoo, aquarium, and Disneyland. The post picked up steam fast within the grilling community, earning roughly 109,000 reactions and 130,000 shares over its first two years.

How It Spread

The post's first major repost came on June 27, 2020, when the Facebook page Golden Gloves Cuisine shared the image, pulling in about 1,800 reactions and 1,200 shares. A month later, on July 28, 2020, Redditor My_Memes_Will_Cure_U posted a screenshot of Eddie's Facebook post to r/MadeMeSmile, where it earned roughly 46,200 upvotes. That same day, iFunny user CockOfDoom reposted the screenshot, picking up around 19,500 smiles.

The comments across platforms reflected a mix of wholesome support and broader discussion about autism awareness. iFunny commenters noted things like "Nothing can stop a man from loving his grill" and "He looks so proud of his chicken," while others used the post to push back against misconceptions about autism.

The response overwhelmed Eddie. He received messages from people in Scotland, Australia, and across Europe. Several companies sent care packages with sauces, rubs, and one even shipped a large quantity of Wagyu meat. A group member set up a GoFundMe so Tristen could buy a new pellet smoker, and the fundraiser hit its goal in just four hours. Eddie donated the extra money to an autism awareness charity in Tristen's name.

By May 2021, the meme had evolved beyond the original wholesome post into fan art territory. Twitter user malefujoshi tweeted an image of Kaworu Nagisa from Neon Genesis Evangelion paired with the catchphrase. On September 21, 2021, Twitter user NadaHarmonia created a redraw inserting Deltarune character Spamton G. Spamton into the template, earning over 310 likes. Then on December 28, 2021, Tumblr user malama-art drew Jotaro Kujo from JoJo's Bizarre Adventure manning the grill, with the caption rewritten to look like it was posted by Joseph Joestar to "New York Joe's Owner Club." That post pulled in roughly 10,900 notes over nine months.

The snowclone format also took off separately. The earliest known variation came on April 9, 2021, when Twitter user s4m31p4n tweeted "Autism be damned my boy can suck and fuck," earning over 240 likes. But the format really exploded on May 29, 2022, when Twitter user _glassduster posted "autism be damned my boy knows his trains," which racked up roughly 35,000 likes in four months. That tweet kicked off a wave of viral iterations through mid-2022, including "Autism Be Damned That boy can tweets" by Twitter user vsshole on June 3, 2022, which got about 3,500 likes.

How to Use This Meme

The meme works in two main formats:

Redraw format: Artists typically recreate the original Facebook post layout, replacing Tristen with a fictional character at the grill. The caption gets modified so the "poster" is another character from the same franchise, and the Facebook group name often gets a punny makeover (like "New York Joe's Owner Club" for the JoJo version). The key elements are the grill, the proud caption, and the fake Facebook UI framing.

Snowclone format: Take the structure "Autism be damned my boy can [skill]" and swap in any activity. The humor usually comes from the specific skill being something stereotypically associated with autistic interests (trains, specific fandoms) or something absurdly unrelated to the original grilling context. The format works best when the replacement skill is unexpected or oddly specific.

Cultural Impact

The original post sparked a genuine outpouring of support for autism awareness. Eddie used the unexpected attention to advocate for understanding, telling The Dad: "Something I would like all people to understand about Tristen and all children like him is that they are different but want the same thing we all do. To be accepted, have fun, and to be involved". His message that autistic people can accomplish anything "with a little patience and a little more guidance" reached audiences worldwide.

The meme's evolution into a fandom redraw trend gave it a second life entirely separate from its wholesome origins. The template became a way for fan communities to celebrate their favorite characters while keeping the original post's warm, proud energy intact. The snowclone variants, meanwhile, took on a more irreverent tone, often played for laughs within autistic and neurodivergent online communities who embraced the phrase as a self-referential joke.

Fun Facts

Eddie's usual activities with Tristen before COVID included swimming at their local pool, sometimes for hours a day.

When Tristen was younger, his school suspected he might be hearing impaired. After a month of testing, Eddie's response was: "I told you, that boy can hear an ice cream truck at 3 miles".

The GoFundMe for Tristen's new pellet smoker hit its goal in just four hours.

Eddie says he's "learned way more from my son than I have ever taught him".

The JoJo's Bizarre Adventure redraw cleverly changed the Facebook group name from "Oklahoma Joe's" to "New York Joe's Owner Club" to match the franchise's setting.

Derivatives & Variations

Evangelion redraw

(May 2021): Kaworu Nagisa placed in the grilling scene, posted by Twitter user malefujoshi[3].

Spamton G. Spamton redraw

(September 2021): Deltarune's Spamton at the grill, by Twitter user NadaHarmonia[3].

Jotaro Kujo / JoJo's redraw

(December 2021): Jotaro grilling with a fake Joseph Joestar caption, by Tumblr user malama-art, earning ~10,900 notes[3].

"My boy knows his trains" snowclone

(May 2022): The most viral text-only variant by Twitter user _glassduster, with ~35,000 likes[3].

"That boy can tweets" snowclone

(June 2022): Part of the mid-2022 snowclone wave by Twitter user vsshole[3].

Frequently Asked Questions