Matthew Perry Foundation for Struggling Addicts Established in His Honor After His Death

The 'Friends' star, who died Oct. 28 at age 54, was vocal about wanting to help others throughout his lifetime — and now, those closest to him are carrying out that legacy

Matthew Perry's loved ones are ensuring that his legacy will be carried out.

Before his untimely death on Oct. 28 at age 54, the beloved Friends star, who battled alcohol and drug addiction for decades, was planning to establish a foundation to support those suffering from substance abuse. Now, Perry's loved ones will be bringing that foundation to fruition in his honor.

A website for The Matthew Perry Foundation went live on Friday. According to the organization's mission statement, "The Matthew Perry Foundation is the realization of Matthew's enduring commitment to helping others struggling with the disease of addiction. It will honor his legacy and be guided by his own words and experiences and driven by his passion for making a difference in as many lives as possible."

The foundation's website also features a black-and-white photo of Perry alongside an inspiring quote about his desire to help others.

"When I die, I don't want 'Friends' to be the first thing that's mentioned — I want helping others to be the first thing that's mentioned. And I'm going to live the rest of my life proving that," the quote from his November 2022 appearance on the Q With Tom Power podcast read. "Addiction is far too powerful for anyone to defeat alone. But together, one day at a time, we can beat it down."

Related: Matthew Perry Planned to Launch a Foundation to Help Others Struggling with Substance Abuse Before His Death

This wouldn't be the first foundation that's been launched by Perry. In 2013, he founded Perry House, a men’s sober living facility, which ran for two years in his old Malibu beach home.

“I’ve helped 100,000 people in a weekend, but I’ve also helped one guy. And it’s the same amount of juice that I get from it,” he previously told PEOPLE. “It doesn’t matter when you see the lights go on in somebody’s eyes who’s been hammered or on drugs for 10 years. That’s what makes your heart grow. And that’s a wonderful thing.”

“The interesting reason that I can be so helpful to people now is that I screwed up so often,” he continued. “It’s nice for people to see that somebody who once struggled in their life is not struggling any more.”

Related: Matthew Perry's Lasting Legacy: How He Won Our Hearts and Found a Mission Helping Others with Addiction

Throughout his lifetime, Perry was open about his own struggle with addiction.

In a 2013 PEOPLE cover story, the actor spoke about abusing alcohol and Vicodin, which a doctor had prescribed him after a 1997 jet ski accident. "I had a big problem with alcohol and pills and I couldn’t stop,” he said. “Eventually things got so bad that I couldn’t hide it, and then everybody knew.”

After Perry House closed, Perry was honored for his advocacy by the treatment center Phoenix House in 2015, telling The Hollywood Reporter at the time, “You can’t have a drug problem for 30 years and then expect to have it be solved in 28 days.”

Ahead of the release of his memoir Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing last year, Perry further detailed his own struggles and revealed that he almost died at 49 due to his escalating drug addiction. He said he spent two weeks in a coma fighting for his life, followed by a five-month hospital stay and a year using a colostomy bag after his colon burst from opioid overuse.

When Perry was first admitted to the hospital, doctors told his family he had only a "two percent chance to live." He recalled being put on an ECMO machine, noting, "That's called a Hail Mary. No one survives that."

Related: Matthew Perry's Close Friend Shares His 'Compassionate' and 'Relatable' Side the Public Didn't See (Exclusive)

Perry — who went to rehab 15 times over the years and spent a fortune trying to get sober — also recounted a terrifying time during his Friends years when he was popping 55 Vicodin pills a day and had dropped to just 128 pounds.

"I didn't know how to stop," he said. "If the police came over to my house and said, 'If you drink tonight, we're going to take you to jail,' I'd start packing. I couldn't stop because the disease and the addiction is progressive. So it gets worse and worse as you grow older."

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In his 2022 interview with PEOPLE, the Friends star said he wanted to share those deeply personal experiences in his memoir in order to help others on a similar journey.

"I wanted to share when I was safe from going into the dark side of everything again," he said. "I had to wait until I was pretty safely sober — and away from the active disease of alcoholism and addiction — to write it all down. And the main thing was, I was pretty certain that it would help people."

Related: Matthew Perry's Friends Costars Speak Out After His Death: 'We Are All So Utterly Devastated' (Exclusive)

Perry was found dead at his Los Angeles home last weekend after an apparent drowning, TMZ first reported. Law enforcement sources told the outlet there were no drugs found and the scene, and no signs of foul play were present.

The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner's Office confirmed to PEOPLE that an autopsy has been completed and results are pending a toxicology report. However, an online record has the status of the actor's cause of death currently listed as "deferred" since it's "pending additional investigation."

The actor's family released a statement to PEOPLE on Sunday, saying, "We are heartbroken by the tragic loss of our beloved son and brother. Matthew brought so much joy to the world, both as an actor and a friend. You all meant so much to him and we appreciate the tremendous outpouring of love."

If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, please contact the SAMHSA helpline at 1-800-662-HELP.

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