NEW DELHI: Tyler Perry announced on his Facebook page on Thursday that he is donating 1 million to relief efforts in Texas following the destruction left by Hurricane Harvey — 250,000 USD of which is going to Joel Osteen‘s Lakewood Church.
The 47-year-old actor has pledged to give the huge sum after the tropical storm ripped through parts of Texas, killing 44 people and destroying more than 100,000 homes.
In a Facebook video, he said, “I was trying to find the right charities to donate to. I was looking for people I can trust, people that I know are going to do the right thing.”
He also talked about the controversial pastor Joel Osteen from the Lakewood Church.
“I know there has been some controversy about Joel Osteen and him not opening the doors of the church. Let me tell you something, Joel and Victoria are amazing people,” he said.
“There is no way they would lock people out of the church. There were some safety concerns. I spoke to them on the phone, it all made perfect sense to me.”
The actor insisted that his gesture is about helping people rather than trying to look good.
He is also giving USD 250,000 to Beyonce's pastor's church, and will further decide soon who to donate the other USD 500,000.
Perry is not the only star to have pledged 1 million to the Hurricane Harvey relief fund.
Other Hollywood celebrities like Leonardo DiCaprio and Sandra Bullock have also donated the same amount and host Ellen DeGeneres also teamed up with ‘Walmart’ to give the same sum.