by Stacy Jackson
May 21, 2024
Marisela Torres said she desired to give her daughter the prom night that she was never able to have and would do it again.
A lavish prom experience for high school junior Fela Burk has ignited a heated online debate after her mother, Marisela Torres, revealed spending an astonishing $16,625 on the special occasion.
During a recent appearance on the “Tamron Hall Show,” the mother-daughter duo opened up about the extravagant price tag and its emotional motivations. Hall meticulously broke down the expenses, listing items like Burk’s $1,300 floor-length gown, $4,900 Jimmy Choo heels, $175 hair styling, a $4,000 car rental, and a $3,900 send-off celebration. Additionally, Torres splurged $1,600 on a hotel for preparations and $750 for photography and videography services.
When questioned about the massive expenditure, Torres revealed a deeper sentiment, stating, “…Prom is really big in Philadelphia, but I didn’t get to go to my prom, and I’m the only one out of four that didn’t.” She added, “I know that was something my mom really, really wanted, so I just told myself that I wanted to give my daughters a big prom.”
Burk, a content creator with over 200,000 TikTok followers, initially shared the $16,000 prom arrangements as part of a viral online trend. Burk took to her TikTok page to address some of the critics, like one who commented, “Black parents will spend $10k on a prom just for their kid to be taking out loans struggling to pay for college months later.” Some critics even accused the family of having illegal money. Burk clarified in the video that her mom works really hard to give her the life she didn’t have, and her posts are for people who want to see, not to brag. She informed viewers about the great ways her family uses their money to give back to the community, something she says isn’t necessary for her to post about.
Burk told Hall that she felt comfortable opening up to her followers and critics, explaining, “I know a lot of people were assuming we couldn’t afford it, so that was the big thing, too.” Despite the backlash, Torres commended her daughter’s gracious response, advising her, “…be positive, don’t come at anyone because we do know some people aren’t fortunate enough to have it, but just explain, we have it, we did it, and you can do the same.”
Ultimately, the mother-daughter duo agreed that the extravagant experience was worth every penny and expressed their willingness to repeat the grand affair.
