Tyler Perry Buys Groceries for Elderly Shoppers, Urges Black Folks to Take COVID-19 Seriously

April 9, 2020

*Tyler Perry surprised thousands of elderly shoppers by picking up their grocery tabs at 44 Kroger stores in Atlanta.

The movie mogul also paid for groceries at 29 Winn-Dixie stores across Louisiana during senior shopping hours.

On Twitter, the supermarket companies thanked Perry for his generosity and showing love to the community.

“He wanted to do something special to provide immediate relief for some of the most vulnerable in the two cities he considers home,” PEOPLE quoted a source as saying.

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CONFIRMED: @tylerperry paid for all groceries during Seniors Hour at 44 Atlanta-area @Kroger stores. Look at these faces — you can see the smiles and tears through the masks! pic.twitter.com/MIm7F5Hssr

— Brendan Keefe (@BrendanKeefe) April 8, 2020

“Thank you to our friend @tylerperry for paying it forward by purchasing groceries for elderly and high-risk #winndixie customers shopping at Louisiana stores this morning,” Winn-Dixie tweeted Wednesday. “Winn-Dixie applauds your love for community and sincere generosity. #StrongerTogether #WinningTogether.”

Earlier this week, Tyler gave $21,000 in tips to 42 out-of-work servers at Houston’s West Paces location in Atlanta.

In related news, the director, writer and actor has issued a passionate plea to Black folks to take the COVID-19 crisis serious after the death of one of his crew members.

Perry posted a lengthy message on Instagram announcing the death of Charles Gregory, a longtime hairdresser at Tyler’s production company who died after contracting the coronavirus.

“The man was warm, loving and hilarious. We all loved to see him coming and hear his laughter. Charles lost his battle with COVID-19 today. It saddens me to think of him dying this way. My sincerest prayers are with his family,” Perry wrote.

“While everyone can contract this virus it is black people who are dying from it in much larger numbers. This thing is real, black people,” he added. “I heard a black person say, ‘Black people don’t get it.’ That is a lie! You can get it, and you will get it if we don’t do what we’re being told to do. A 26 year old black woman died the other day, a 44 year old black man died the other day, not to mention the hundreds of people that are dying every few minutes. Your age does not matter!! Your health does not matter. You could be totally healthy, and you could die!”

Read his full IG message below.

View this post on Instagram

Dear Black People, Today it’s with a heavy heart that I inform you of the passing of one of our crew members. Mr. Charles Gregory was a hairstylist that had worked with us for many years. The man was warm, loving and hilarious. We all loved to see him coming and hear his laughter. Charles lost his battle with COVID-19 today. It saddens me to think of him dying this way. My sincerest prayers are with his family. While everyone can contract this virus it is black people who are dying from it in much larger numbers. This thing is real, black people. I heard a black person say, “Black people don’t get it.” That is a lie! You can get it, and you will get it if we don’t do what we’re being told to do. A 26 year old black woman died the other day, a 44 year old black man died the other day, not to mention the hundreds of people that are dying every few minutes. Your age does not matter!! Your health does not matter. You could be totally healthy, and you could die! Now listen to me. You have been right by my side since I started in this business, so please hear me with your heart. I LOVE US. I love our humor. I love our culture. I love our hair. I love our skin. I love everything about who we are. All of us. And I love us all too much to watch us die on the vine because we are the last to know and we are not taking this pandemic seriously. Black people, we are at a disproportionately higher risk of dying from this virus. Please, please, please, I beg you to take this seriously. You have to socially distance yourself. That means stop hanging out, stop congregating, stop doing anything that will put not only your life in danger but also the lives of so many others. STAY HOME!! Socially distance yourself and stay alive! If you won’t do it for yourself, do it for someone you love, and for those who love you. My Mother always told me to not wait for help! Be your own help!

A post shared by Tyler Perry (@tylerperry) on Apr 8, 2020 at 7:24pm PDT