Saturday Night Live Star Paying Rent for 160 New Yorkers

Saturday Night Live's Michael Che recently lost his grandmother Martha, but her memory lives on through her grandson, and now 160 New Yorkers are also feeling that love through a sweet gesture from Che. Many are struggling to make ends meet and pay their bills, including rent, during the coronavirus shutdowns. That's why the Weekend Update star revealed on Instagram that he was helping some New Yorkers pay their rent in honor of his late grandmother, 160 New Yorkers in fact, who all live in the same public housing complex that his grandmother once lived in. You can read his full message below (via CNN).

"It's crazy to me that residents of public housing are still expected to pay their rent when so many New Yorkers can't even work," Che wrote on Instagram. "Obviously I cant offer much help by myself. But in the spirit and memory of my late grandmother, I'm paying one month's rent for all 160 apartments in the NYCHA building she lived in. I know that's just a drop in the bucket. So I really hope the city has a better plan for debt forgiveness for all the people in public housing, AT THE VERY LEAST." Ps. deblasio! cuomo! diddy! let's fix this! page me! - che"

While Che mentions this is just a drop in the bucket, it's an amazingly sweet gesture and one that the 160 people its helping will be grateful for.

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A post shared by Michael Che (@chethinks) on Apr 15, 2020 at 4:26pm PDT

Che lost his grandmother Martha to complications with COVID-19, and he shared this emotional Instagram message afterward.

"I'm obviously very hurt and angry that she had to go through all that pain alone. But I'm also happy that she's not in pain anymore. And I also feel guilty for feeling happy," Che wrote.

He also gave her a sweet tribute during last week's virtual SNL, signing off with "From Weekend Update, I'm Martha's grandbaby."