Oprah is looking out for folks in the cities she's called home ... giving grants to 5 areas through her $12 million COVID-19 relief fund.
O just announced a massive pledge Wednesday through her Oprah Winfrey Charitable Foundation, which is spreading the $12 million around underserved communities in places she's lived -- Baltimore, Chicago, Milwaukee and Nashville -- and Kosciusko, Miss., where she was born.
The beloved talk show host says wealthy people need to step up and donate, because the novel coronavirus is not going away. She says even when the virus is gone, people will still be reeling from the devastation it's causing their livelihoods, particularly folks who live paycheck to paycheck and are burning through savings amid the raging pandemic.
Oprah says she's donating to the 5 cities she once called home because it's important to look into your own backyard and your own neighborhood to see how you can help less fortunate souls.
O is giving $5 million to Live Healthy Chicago, an organization supporting seniors and other high-risk residents affected by COVID-19, after speaking with Mayor Lori Lightfoot.
Down in Nashville, where Oprah started her media career while living with her father, she's giving $2 mill to NashvilleNurtures, a collab between her alma mater Tennessee State University and Mount Zion Baptist Church. The funds will put food on the plates of 10,000 local families.
Over in Milwaukee, where Oprah lived with her mom, she's donating $100,000 to SaintA and The Nia Imani Family, Inc. to aid those in need of mental health care and housing.
Meanwhile, in Baltimore, where Oprah also built her media empire, she's giving funds to the Center For Urban Families and Living Classrooms Foundation.
And, in her birthplace, Oprah is donating another $115,000 to the Boys and Girls Club of East Mississippi.
As we reported ... Oprah announced her coronavirus relief fund in April, initially pledging $1 million to feed food-insecure Americans, and just last week she challenged 2020 graduates to find their essential service in her virtual commencement speech.
O says she challenged herself to do the same, and she's putting a lot of money where her mouth is.