Ellen DeGeneres breaks down during final episode of her show: 'Biggest gift'

Ellen DeGeneres is signing off forever from her talk show The Ellen DeGeneres Show.

Welcoming various guests to mark the final episode of season 19, the comedian sent out an emotional message, calling the show "the greatest privilege of my life."

On an ending note, Ellen spoke fondly of her crew and thanked them for always 'surrounding her with love.'

"You surrounded me with so much love and so much support. You nurtured me and you found a way to make me shine brighter than I could do it by myself. You helped me be my best. I love you more than I can possibly say," said Ellen.

She continued: "To all of you who have watched me and supported me, thank you so much for this platform," she said. "And I hope that what I've been able to do in the last 19 years has made you happy, and that I was able to take a little bit of pain away from a bad day or anything you're going through."

"And I hope I've been able to inspire you to make other people happy and to do good in the world, to feel like you have a purpose. And I've said it before, but I'll say it again: If I've done anything in the past 19 years, I hope I've inspired you to be yourself — your true, authentic self. And if someone is brave enough to tell you who they are, be brave enough to support them, even if you don't understand. They're showing you who they are, and that is the biggest gift anybody can ever give you. And by opening your heart and your mind, you're going to be that much more compassionate — and compassion is what makes the world a better place," Ellen added as she held back her tears.

"Thank you so much for being on this journey with me. I feel the love, and I send it back to you," she said, then whispered while losing her breath "Bye."