He might be Oprah’s go-to-guy for interior design, but these days Nate Berkus is doing a whole lot more for the daytime diva. Taking a break from elaborate home makeovers, Berkus is now host of Oprah’s Big Give, a new reality show where contestants raise money to help those in need. We caught up with the designer and here’s what he had to say …
On how surviving the 2004 Tsunami helped him understand what it means to need:
“The most succinct way I can put it for you is that I had both the misfortune and the good fortune to have had to rely on the kindness of absolute strangers. When you gain an understanding of what that feels like and what those needs feel like it definitely opened me up to being much more sensitive as a person and so when I heard about this show and what this show was doing and this was a show I could be involved …and watch how people connected across the country it really felt like a true gift to me.”
On the competitive nature of the show:
“It’s not easy to give. People have to be very creative…I think the judges do a fantastic job of giving constructive criticism to all the contestants week after week to inspire them to do better. That’s what people at home as well need to understand. This isn’t a show that is just about giving away money. You saw in the first episode how creative certain contestants got and how much effort they put forth and how others did it.”
On what makes Oprah’s Big Give great for families:
“I think one of the goals of the show is that families can watch this together and that there is stuff out there that parents feel good about watching with their kids and this is definitely a show that does this. I know the children in my life watched this show last Sunday and came to me and said “Wow that’s so cool. We want to start a drive at our school. We want to help the new kid.” It is a great place to sit with your children and then start a conversation with them about how they can open their eyes to their community.”
Oprah’s Big Give airs Sunday nights at 9/8 c.
