Tyler Perry just took “Love thy neighbor” to the next level.
The “Boo 2! A Madea Halloween” star donated $1 million to Hurricane Harvey relief efforts — with $250,000 of that cash going to Joel Osteen’s Lakewood Church in Houston.
Osteen, 54, came under fire this week after he allegedly refused to open Lakewood’s doors to residents who were displaced by severe flooding from Hurricane Harvey last week.
The televangelist denied shutting out Harvey victims, blaming flooding in the building for the delay. He also claimed the city of Houston requested that the megachurch, which seats 16,800, be used as a distribution center instead of a shelter. Lakewood eventually welcomed residents Monday.
Perry, 47, explained his decision and defended his longtime friend Osteen in a Facebook video Thursday.
“I know that there’s been some controversy about Joel Osteen and him not opening doors of the church. Let me tell you something: Joel and Victoria are amazing people. There is no way they would lock people out of the church and not let people in for shelter,” he continued. “There were some safety concerns. I spoke to them on the phone, and it all made perfect sense to me so before you just run and judge somebody really quick, you need to know the whole circumstances … This million dollars, I’m breaking it up into quarters. I’m sending $250,000 to Lakewood to make sure that they can get all the supplies that people need. I know that they will, I know for sure that they will, because that’s the kind of person he is.”
Perry is also donating $250,000 to Beyoncé’s pastor, Rudy Rasmus, though he didn’t disclose what other organizations would receive the remaining $500,000.
The move came after the actor and writer noted difficulty in finding the right charities to deal with the aftermath properly.
“I’m trying to figure out how to help, but I’ve given millions of dollars to charities in the past that never got to the people it was meant for,” he wrote on Facebook on Tuesday. “I know lots of people want to give and help but be careful. You really need to know how much of your donations actually get to the people before you choose an organization to give to.”
