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Following Matthew Perry’s death on October 28 at the age of 54, a foundation was established in the actor’s name. The Matthew Perry Foundation is accepting donations to help people struggling with addiction, announced in a press release Friday morning.
“In the spirit of Matthew Perry’s continued commitment to helping others struggling with the disease of addiction, we are embarking on a journey to honor his legacy by establishing the Matthew Perry Foundation, guided by his own words and experiences “Driven by his passion for making a difference in as many lives as possible,” the foundation’s founding statement says.
The organization also points to Perry’s hope to be remembered primarily as a person who helped others struggling with addiction.
“When I die, I don’t want ‘friends’ to be the first thing mentioned – I want ‘helping others’ to be the first thing mentioned,” Perry said on the “Q With Tom Power” podcast in 2022, promoting his podcast Memoirs. “I will spend the rest of my life proving that. Addiction is far too powerful for anyone to conquer alone. But together we can do it one day at a time.”
Perry, best known for his role as Chandler Bing on the popular sitcom Friends, spoke openly about his struggles with drug and alcohol abuse. After a jet ski accident in 1997, he became addicted to Vicodin and entered rehab in 2001. He later converted his former home in Malibu into a sober living facility called Perry House, which operated until 2015.
The Foundation is sponsored and managed by the National Philanthropic Trust, a public charity and leader in donor-advised funds that has raised more than $49 billion since its inception.
The official website of the Matthew Perry Foundation can be found here.