Oprah Winfrey makes $1 million donation to help DC homeless women at N Street Village

WASHINGTON - We all know Oprah Winfrey loves to give. Well, she is back at it again. This time, she surprised a Washington D.C. charity that helps women in need with a huge helping hand.

Winfrey gave $1 million to N Street Village, an organization that helps homeless and low-income women in the nation’s capital.

The gift was unexpected, but so welcomed. It happened on Thursday at N Street Village’s Empowerment Luncheon. The organization helps women in need through housing and employment as well as helping those battling drug addiction or are encountering health issues.

They only wanted to hear Winfrey’s inspirational words, but they got so much more.

“I thank you N Street for seeing, hearing and knowing that every life matters, every woman matters,” Winfrey said.

Linda Rush introduced Winfrey at the luncheon. For years, Rush was addicted to crack and involved in prostitution.

“My mom dropped me off. She walked me in here,” said Rush.

At one time before finding N Street Village, Rush wanted to reach out to Winfrey.

“Twenty years ago, I wanted to write her a letter and ask her to help me into a program,” Rush told FOX 5. “The people I was getting high with, they were like, ‘Oh, she don’t have time for you.’”

Two decades later, Rush told Winfrey that story and how N Street Village helped turn her life around.

“Before I introduced her, I said that now she can see for herself how things turned out,” Rush said. “She said, ‘I see.’ And that felt – I can't even describe that feeling.”

“N Street Village has been a vital part of Washington D.C. for over 40 years now,” said Schroeder Stribling, executive director for N Street Village.”

It has four locations across the city helping homeless women get their lives back on track. Stribling said Winfrey’s gift brought her to tears.

“I went up and I kind of couldn't help myself, but hang on her for a while and cry,” Stribling said.

Like so many others at N Street Village, Rush’s life is better than ever. She has her own place now, a good job, and her daughter, who was once taken away from her mother, couldn't be prouder.

N Street Village functions through private donations alone. Its main center is right on 14th Street in Northwest D.C and really blends into the community.

It is unknown how will Winfrey’s money be spent, but the organization is expanding and the money will help countless other women in need.