Over the course of her career Oprah Winfrey has established herself as the world's most popular talk show host, while also accumulating a vast personal fortune and picking up an Oscar nomination. The iconic presenter says her greatest achievement to date, however, is the school for girls she has just opened in the town of Henley-on-Klip outside Johannesburg.
Many of her showbiz friends, including Tina Turner, Mariah Carey and Sydney Poitier, were in attendance for Tuesday's ceremony. And the woman at the centre of everyone's attention, who was born into an impoverished family in rural Mississippi, is hoping the students who attend her new academy will one day help South Africa overcome its problems.
The school, which cost £20 million to build, will put a special focus on helping the young scholars develop the qualities to become future leaders.
"When you educate a girl, you begin to change the face of a nation," explained the billionaire philanthropist. "They will excel and pass their excellence on to their families, their nation and our world. I wanted to give this opportunity to girls who had a light so bright that not even poverty could dim it."
Some 3,500 young hopefuls, all of them from families with a monthly income of less than £400, applied for an initial 150 places at the facility. And the American star, who promised to build the school six years ago while visiting former President Nelson Mandela, interviewed many of the girls herself. "I went to their homes - I know all of them by name," she said. "Their story is my story."
Photo: © Alphapress.com
Photo: © Alphapress.com
