Ask Oprah which profession she considers the most noble, and she’s bound to say teaching. “They’re the ones preparing and molding the next generation for our future,” she declares in the latest installment of The OG Chronicles, the series hosted by Oprah and our editor at large, Gayle King. “When it comes time for a teacher to retire, it’s almost like they’ve reached the moment when they feel as though they’ve truly made their mark and can sit back and watch, knowing that all of the knowledge and all of the values they’ve shared over the years have hopefully made a difference to their students.”
With this in mind, she and Gayle partnered with Zelle—which makes it easy to send and receive money with almost anyone with a bank account in the U.S.—to honor a few recently retired and soon-to-be retiring teachers with a surprise gift: $4,000 each, sent directly with Zelle into their bank accounts.
Before revealing the surprise, Oprah and Gayle talk with each of the three teachers on camera. Dr. Wendy Smith, a library-and-media specialist for 24 years, is looking forward to entertaining more and possibly even starting a food truck. Dr. Tusha Porter, a public school gifted-and-talented teacher for 30 years, wants to see the world. And Anne Flynn, an elementary school teacher who bravely battled breast cancer without ever missing a day of work, is eager to spend more time with her children and grandchildren.
Bringing them all together on a split-screen, Oprah reiterates her deep respect for their profession. “In my opinion, there is no higher calling, no higher good you can do in the world than to share your spirit, your knowledge, your energy, your life force with young people and help them be the best that they were meant to be,” she says, before asking, “So Gayle, how are we going to thank them?”
That’s when Gayle shares the news: “To show our appreciation for everything that you’ve done in your teaching careers,” she says, “we’re sending each of you $4,000 with Zelle directly into your bank accounts!”
There’s laughter, clapping, and shouts of “Oh my goodness” from the teachers, and suddenly they’re the ones taking instruction—from Oprah. “We want you to treat yourself,” she says. “Use this to travel, use it to do whatever is meaningful to you.”
Check out the full video above.
