Torrence Burson, a father from Memphis, TN, witnessed his daughter Gabrielle crying one day, and realized she was heartbroken about missing her college graduation ceremony [1]. As a proud dad, he wanted Gabrielle to be able to truly celebrate the bachelor [2]'s degree she earned from Xavier University in New Orleans, so he got a little creative by crafting his own graduation ceremony [3] — complete with a full-on stage and customized programs.
Fortunately, the family's neighbor, Delandrion Todd, was able to take photos of the detailed graduation ceremony. After sharing the snaps to Instagram [4], they quickly gained popularity. "My next door neighbors' daughter couldn't have her official graduation due to the pandemic so he created one for her!" read the caption. "Now that's a great/proud father for you. He made it happen!"
From the professional banner and the official-looking podium to the family's scholarly outfits, Torrence completely nailed it. He told the local news that if he had the chance, he'd do it again. "We love our daughter this much, regardless of the dollar figure, what it took to pull this off," he told Fox 13 Memphis. "If I had to do this over again, I'd probably do it even bigger."
Gabrielle, on the other hand, was completely taken by surprise when she saw what her father had done. "I was just in awe," she said. "I was amazed. I couldn't believe a lot of people showed up. People were driving by yelling congratulations [6]."
Aw, how sweet! Talk about a thoughtful dad. Congrats to Gabrielle on her big accomplishment!