INDIANAPOLIS (TEGNA) — Oprah Winfrey has announced she will join in helping with coronavirus relief efforts with a $10 million donation.
Winfrey said $1 million of the $10 million will go to America's Food Fund, an initiative founded by Leonardo DiCaprio and Laurene Powell Jobs in association with Chef Jose Andres' Word Central Kitchen. Winfrey made the announcement in an "Oprah Talks" interview with Andres and Feeding America CEO Claire Banineaux-Fontenot.
In a tweet, she said the rest of the money would help Americans in "cities across the country" and in areas where she grew up. Winfrey was raised in Mississippi and Tennessee.
Winfrey joins several big names who have made donations to fight the new coronavirus, which causes the disease known as COVID-19. Her donation comes one day after Dolly Parton announced she would give $1 million to Vanderbilt University's Medical Center for coronavirus research.
Actors Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively also announced in March they would donate $1 million to food banks that help older adults and low-income individuals impacted by the pandemic. Cleveland Cavaliers player Kevin Love donated $100,000 to the staff at Cleveland's Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse stadium following the suspension of the NBA season.
