Nykia Hamilton, the 25-year-old single mother from Columbia, South Carolina, who became known as the “Burger King Mom” after running a restaurant alone for 12 hours, is now closing in on $130,000 raised on GoFundMe to support her family.
Nykia went viral last month after a TikTok captured her juggling every role in the restaurant, all on her own. Despite working so hard and going viral, Nykia later revealed she was fired. She said, explaining in a TikTok clip, “[Burger King] fired me because I’ve been late because of my kids. My kids come first. Y’all don’t pay for no babysitter or nothing.” She told WACH FOX how being a single mum made it difficult to balance childcare and her demanding shifts, though she always gave her all.
Following the backlash over Nykia being fired, Burger King clarified that the decision to terminate Nykia’s employment rested with the franchise owner, not the company itself. A spokesperson told the New York Post, “Terminations are the decision of the franchisees who own and operate the BK restaurant. In this situation, the franchisee confirmed that the individual involved is no longer employed due to repeated attendance issues.”
The spokesperson also addressed the viral 12-hour shift, saying, “No team member should ever be left to run a restaurant alone, even for a short period of time. We’re disappointed that our policy wasn’t followed.”
Turning viral fame into support: Nykia’s GoFundMe surges past $127,000
@kianolabel I just wanna say I love y’all and thank yall for the support for me and kids we have a lot coming soon #fyp #singlemomof3 #handshelpinghands #godfirst
Nykia’s GoFundMe campaign, originally launched on July 9 with a goal of $60,000, has now seen a massive surge. Just last week, it was around $72,000, and it has now climbed to $127,000. According to Primetimer, more than 300 people donated to the campaign on Sunday, August 24. The campaign is designed to help her provide for her three children. And Nykia has expressed deep gratitude to everyone who has supported her.
“I am a 25-year-old single mom of 3 who works 2 jobs. I just went viral for working on TikTok. If you wanna contribute, it’s ok. Thank y’all for the support. I wasn’t expecting my life to change how it did. I really do everything for my kids,” she wrote.
Nykia also promised to drop a video after so many people donated in the GoFundMe and helped her exceed her goal. She said, “Thank y’all so much for the support I didn’t expect turn out. But I promise I won’t let y’all stay tune for videos dropping soon.”
Since leaving Burger King, Nykia has turned her attention to building a new career as a content creator and entrepreneur. She regularly posts on TikTok, sharing insights into her life as a single parent and inspiring others.
She’s also working on launching a nonprofit called Hands Helping Hands. It’s aimed at providing support for single parents and others in need. Basically, to help any single parent, single mom, single dad, anybody who needs any help.
For more like this, like The Tab on Facebook. Featured image via TikTok/@kianolabel/@dejlatae.
