Oprah makes surprise visit to help dedicate Mattie Stepanek Park

From The Gazette in Rockville, Md. Oprah Winfrey also gave a eulogy at Mattie Stepanek's 2004 funeral (pictured).

Oprah Winfrey made a surprise appearance in Rockville Oct. 18 as hundreds of people gathered to dedicate the Mattie J. T. Stepanek Park, bringing the boy's mother to tears.

"I'm here because I loved my guy Mattie," Winfrey told the crowd. "We had a special relationship. Lots of people have gone on and through the Oprah show, and I can honestly say I have never fostered the kind of relationship long-term and friendship than I did with Mattie Stepanek. And that happened because I could see he was a highly, highly evolved spiritual being and just being in his presence made me feel happy inside."

Matthew "Mattie" J.T. Stepanek , who died at 13 in 2004 of a rare form of muscular dystrophy, was an internationally renowned poet, author and goodwill ambassador for the Muscular Dystrophy Association. He lived in Rockville's the King Farm neighborhood; his wheelchair-bound mother, Jeni Stepanek, still lives there.

Winfrey was not scheduled to be a part of the day's festivities. She had been invited but wanted her attendance to be a surprise for Jeni Stepanek. In e-mail exchanges, Winfrey told Stepanek that she was in Africa and could not make the ceremony.

"I was shocked and thrilled," Stepanek said after the ceremony. "It's a statement of their friendship and my son's legacy."

Not even city event organizers knew Winfrey was coming until her security guards showed up 20 minutes ahead of her and said she was on her way.

"She outfoxed us all," said Burt Hall, Rockville's director of recreation and parks.

Nationally renowned music artist Billy Gilman also made an appearance at the ceremony. The 20-year-old star is the national youth chairman of the Muscular Dystrophy Association and in 2003 released an album called "Music Through Heartsongs" based on Mattie Stepanek's poetry.

"It's amazing," Gilman said of the park, which features a peace garden with a bronze statue of Mattie. "The words that come to mind are hope and peace for this world. The war's getting worse and worse and it's great to see a place that celebrates his legacy and continues his legacy through his message."