LR native to appear on penultimate Oprah show
This article was published May 24, 2011 at 10:02 a.m.
PHOTO BY AP
Reginald Cleaver
An Arkansas native was among the thousands at Oprah Winfrey's "Surprise Spectacular" event last week, joining celebrities in wishing the talk-show queen farewell.
Reginald Cleaver, a 2005 graduate of Parkview High in Little Rock, recieved the Oprah Leadership Scholarship after displaying leadership skills at Morehouse College.
For Cleaver, that scholarship meant everything — his mother had put her doctorate degree on hold to help him through college.
Cleaver, along with hundreds of other scholarship recipients, attended the event in a special segement to be aired today.
Cleaver is now pursuing a master of divinity degree at Emory University.
He said he couldn't have achieved as much as he has without the help of Winfrey.
"My learning went beyond the classroom and any textbook that has been written. I was able to get hands-on experience," he said. "I was able to travel to places I would otherwise only been able to read about."
The experiences culminated last week at the Winfrey taping.
"To stand on the stage with her and to see her emotions as we honored her was such an oustanding experience," Cleaver said. "I felt as if I had some impact on her, but she had a greater impact on me."
Cleaver did a little celebrity spotting while in Chicago — before his segement he saw Michael Jordan, Tyler Perry, Dr. Phil, Will and Jada Smith.
But it is the opportunity to extend learning beyond the classroom that Cleaver cherishes most, from outreach in South Africa to fund-raising for Haiti earthquake victims.
"Winning this scholarship has also inspired me to 'pay it forward', to be able to bless someone one day as this honor has blessed me."
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