The Great Oprah

Before I moved to New York, I new little about Oprah Winfrey. I just knew she had a very famous talk-show in the States and she was one of the most powerful woman in business.

However, when I moved to New York, I started watching her program, researching about her and... Oh, man! She's Great! She's like an angel on earth.

I admire her professional career, of course: television pioneer, producer, actress, cable network co-founder, etc. In 2003, Oprah became the first African-American woman to reach billionaire status, according to Forbes Magazine. She has broken through cultural, geographical and gender barriers, letting the world know it’s not your circumstances, but your heart that determines how far you go in this world.

However, what I admire most from her is her passion for giving back to society. She is a great philanthropist.

I totally agree with her, when she affirms that education is the door to freedom.

Through the Oprah Winfrey Foundation and her Oprah's Angel Network, she:

• Awarded hundreds of grants to organizations that support the education and empowerment of women, children and families in the United States and around the world.
• Donated millions of dollars toward providing a better education for students who have merit but no means.
• Developed schools to educate thousands of underserved children internationally and created "The Oprah Winfrey Scholars Program," which gives scholarships to students determined to use their education to give back to their communities in the United States and abroad.
• During Christmas 2002, her life changed when she traveled to South Africa to bring holiday cheer to the children. She calls those 21 days some of the most miraculous of her life.
  “I realized in those moments why I was born, why I am not married and do not have children of my own. These are my children. I made a decision to be a voice for those children, to empower them, to help educate them, so the spirit that burns alive inside each of them does not die," she said.
  With the help of Nelson Mandela, Oprah launched ChristmasKindness, giving the children of South Africa one day of pure joy, toys and hope, just as she received as a 12-year-old on welfare.
  In two provinces, over 12 days, thousands of rural South African children from 63 schools joined Oprah and her team of friends and volunteers. Tents went up, music played, everyone danced, food was passed out, and backpacks filled with clothes, toys, books and school supplies were distributed to all.
• On December 6, 2002, Oprah partnered with South Africa's Ministry of Education to build the "Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls—South Africa," which is scheduled to open in 2007.
• Raised more than $50 million, with 100% of audience donations going to non-profit organizations across the globe.

In 1991, this abuse survivor initiated a campaign to establish a national database of convicted child abusers. Then President Clinton signed the "Oprah Bill" into law in 1993. In the aforementioned interview, Oprah stated:

“A part of my mission in life now is to encourage every other child who has been abused to tell. You tell, and if they don't believe you, you keep telling. You tell everybody until somebody listens to you…I don't want another child to be afraid of saying, ‘This is what happened to me’.”

She demonstrates day by day her care about creating a better world. She is specially committed to improve the life of those less favoured, to children and to women. She inspires and educates her audience everyday, moving us to "make a difference".

I've always dreamed about creating my own Foundation. I want to do that, I want to make a difference in this world; and Oprah showed me that no matter what, all of us have the power to make the world a better place.

For all the mention and far more, Oprah Winfrey is one of my personal roles model and heroes.