Tyler Perry has reportedly offered actress Cocoa Brown a $400,000 donation after she and her young son lost their home to a fire.
Earlier this week, the 51-year-old Praise This star’s social media pages revealed that she and her son Phoenix must “rebuild their lives from scratch” after a house fire.
Photos of the scene, shared by TMZ, showed what remained of the Fayetteville, GA home’s structure following the blaze.
Since the fire, Brown’s team has launched a GoFundMe campaign, which has since seen over $70,000 of their $100,000 goal fulfilled.
Along with the top donators — from Tiffany Haddish to Marlon Wayans — TMZ reports that Perry, 54, made his own massive pledge of $400,000, and noted that Brown is grateful for both his support in particular and the overall generosity of those who’ve pitched in toward her campaign.
Brown and Perry are longtime collaborators, as the pair previously teamed up for both the series Tyler Perry’s For Better or Worse and the 2014 comedy-drama The Single Moms Club.
“Having each other, our fur babies, and seeing and feeling all this love has strengthened our love for each other and humanity,” Brown told the outlet of her family.
2014
The GoFundMe campaign, which noted that “the road ahead is undoubtedly daunting” for the comedian and her son, encouraged others to “shine a beacon of hope and happiness in this time of darkness.” Donations will be used toward shelter, clothing and other necessities for the pair, the campaign reads.
“We’re launching a fundraising campaign to assist Cocoa and Phoenix as they embark on this journey to start anew. Every contribution, no matter how big or small, will make a difference in helping them rebuild what was lost,” the fundraiser — signed by “Team Cocoa Brown” — noted.
On Instagram Thursday, Brown thanked her followers for “all your love, concern & support,” and asked them to “continue to pray for us.”
“I’d like to thank everyone who has been reaching out to me and my son during this devastating time,” Brown wrote. “I apologize if I haven’t been answering calls especially yesterday, but I lost my phone in the fire and I was using a spare phone that didn’t have enough memory.”
“…This is by far the most devastating thing that’s ever happened to me… I’m not OK, but all of your love and support has been incredibly gracious and kind,” she continued. “Please pray for me and my son as we navigate through this unexpected horrific incident.”