Katy Perry’s preacher parents spent $178k DONATIONS on expenses

Katy Perry‘s preacher parents spent 96% of donations to their charity on expenses including ‘retreats’ at exclusive Marriott Hotels, flights, meals and cars, charity filings reveal.

Keith and Mary Hudson run a religious charity, Keith Hudson Ministries, hosting conferences in Hawaii and San Diego and ‘Prophetic Nights’, where Mary speaks in tongues and claims to heal members of the audience.

Documents the charity filed with the IRS this month show that in 2019 it raised $185,679 – but spent $178,046 of it on expenses.

The ministry paid out $6,900 for ‘occupancy’ including hotel stays according to the filing, $8,799 for ‘travel’ such as air fares, $5,516 for ‘auto expenses’ and $7,620 for ‘meals’ – averaging at over $600 per month.

The Santa Barbara, California-based Hudsons also list $84,058 for ‘conference expenses’, $12,112 for ‘other expenses’ and $19,448 for ‘tithes and offerings’.

After raising $185,679, the charity was left with just $7,633 cash at the end of the year.

Katy Perry’s evangelical preacher parents Keith and Mary Hudson parents spent 96% of donations to their charity on expenses including ‘retreats’ at exclusive Marriott Hotels 

Documents obtained by DailyMail.com show the charity filed with the IRS this month and in 2019 it raised $185,679 – but the couple spent $178,046

Documents obtained by DailyMail.com show the charity filed with the IRS this month and in 2019 it raised $185,679 – but the couple spent $178,046

The couple host ‘Arise Conferences’ in exotic and desirable vacation destinations around the world including Hawaii, Malaysia, France, Belgium, Panama and Switzerland, using donations to sponsor domestic violence victims to attend.

Keith, who often resembles a rock star with leather jackets and wrap-around shades, claims to channel the Holy Spirit to give ‘gifts of healing, working miracles, prophecy, discerning of spirits, and various kinds of tongues.’

Perry has spoken in interviews about her strict religious upbringing, where the Hudsons even banned the term ‘deviled eggs’ in their house and sent her to ‘Jesus camp’ where the I Kissed a Girl singer was encouraged to ‘pray the gay away’.

But the religious couple were not always so straight-laced. In the 1960s they reportedly partied with drugs, Mary dated Jimmy Hendrix, and Keith was ‘part of the Strawberry Fields Forever’ according to a 2009 interview Perry gave to Katie Couric.

The singer also said her father helped manufacture LSD with Timothy Leary, the infamous 1960s hallucinogenic drug researcher who coined the phrase ‘Turn on, tune in, drop out.’

However, Keith claimed that God spoke to him in an orchard 50 years ago, turning him into a devout Christian and inspiring him to found a ministry.

Their charity work has taken them around the globe, and the couple hosted a string of events in exotic locations last year.

In September Mary hosted a conference in Hawaii at Kaua’i Marriott Resort, a four-star hotel on the beach, where rooms cost $309 per night plus taxes, on top of a $65 fee to attend the event.

The following month, she held a three-day event at Wailea Beach Resort, Hawaii, another Marriott where the most basic room cost at least $650-a-night for that time of year, plus $85 entry fee for the event.

The Arise Conference site blurb quoted the bible, saying: ‘Believe his prophets and you will prosper… Join us and help encourage 40 ladies from local shelters be transformed by the word of God!’

The charity also has an ‘Arise Kona’ in Hawaii planned for May at Waikoloa Beach Marriott Resort and Spa and ‘Arise Santa Barbara’ the following month.

On their website, Keith Hudson Ministries, they say they're a 'dynamic couple who've been ministering together for 40 years'

On their website, Keith Hudson Ministries, they say they’re a ‘dynamic couple who’ve been ministering together for 40 years’

The couple hosted an Arise Conference in 2017 and have photos from the event on their website

The couple hosted an Arise Conference in 2017 and have photos from the event on their website

On Keith and Mary's website there are numerous options to donate and become a sponsor, starting from $400 to $10,000

On Keith and Mary’s website there are numerous options to donate and become a sponsor, starting from $400 to $10,000

The couple plan to continue holding their Arise Conferences in 2021 in multiple Hawaii locations and in Santa Barbara, California

The couple plan to continue holding their Arise Conferences in 2021 in multiple Hawaii locations and in Santa Barbara, California 

Any of these events can be sponsored, although it is unclear from the Arise Conferences website where the money goes.

For $400, called ‘LIFE Sponsor’, you get a signed copy of Mary’s book ‘Joyful Parent = Happy Home’.

For $1,000, as a ‘HOPE Sponsor’, you’ll receive an invitation to the VIP reception, preferred seating and photo opportunities with the guest speakers.

The next donation option is $5,000 for a ‘VISION Sponsor’ – two free Arise Conferences tickets and ‘breakfast with Mary Hudson.’

Keith, who often resembles a rock star with leather jackets and wrap-around shades, claims to channel the Holy Spirit to give 'gifts of healing, working miracles, prophecy, discerning of spirits, and various kinds of tongues'

Keith, who often resembles a rock star with leather jackets and wrap-around shades, claims to channel the Holy Spirit to give ‘gifts of healing, working miracles, prophecy, discerning of spirits, and various kinds of tongues’

The largest option is a ‘GLORY Sponsor’. For $10,000 you will receive all the VIP trimmings of the cheaper sponsor packages plus a ‘special gift from Mary Hudson’.

The 2019 IRS documents filed this month show the charity has received $666,142 in the five years from 2015 through 2019. Its fundraising from grants and donations has almost doubled from $105,114 in 2015 to $184,137 in 2019.

Although their expenses ate up most of the charity’s donations, Keith and Mary took very modest salaries. They logged an average of 30 hours per week working for their ministry but paid themselves just $5,043 each for the year.

Last year the Hudsons caused a stir when they began selling $20 inspirational face masks and bracelets to help subsidize their glamorous lifestyle preaching around the world.

The masks were emblazoned with the words ‘I Can, I Will’, ‘Faith’, ‘Believe’, or ‘Be Happy’, and were sold on their website.

The link to donate automatically went to the ‘Becoming a Partner’ page, where all donations fund their religious globetrotting, which they called ‘The Urgency Tour’.

‘God has given us a voice… a voice that reaches out to women in domestic violence shelters and encourages them to overcome, a voice for teenagers to rise up and help change their generation for Christ,’ the site said.

‘When you partner with us, your voice joins with ours to increase the impact we can have on this generation.

‘God has called us to reach out to the world and we’ve called this outreach ‘The Urgency Tour.’ We believe that the time is now for us to do whatever we can do to reach this generation with the simple gospel.

‘Your convenient, auto-debit gift of any amount is appreciated and establishes your commitment with this ministry as a friend and regular supporter. Giving is an expression of love and commitment to advance the work of the Kingdom of God. Know that your monthly donations help us to continue and expand our reach and help proclaim the Gospel worldwide.’

The Arise Conferences website states: ‘Women from domestic violence shelters and drug rehabilitation homes are invited to attend and be transformed from victims to victors. Prophetic words are downloaded to Mary as she ministers throughout the congregation. Her ministry of encouragement has brought many out of darkness into His marvelous light.’

Keith and Mary Hudson travel the globe preaching at evangelical churches after giving up their own in Santa Barbara in the eighties.

Perry has spoken in interviews about her strict religious upbringing, where the Hudsons even banned the term 'deviled eggs' in their house and sent her to 'Jesus camp' where the I Kissed a Girl singer was encouraged to 'pray the gay away'

Perry has spoken in interviews about her strict religious upbringing, where the Hudsons even banned the term ‘deviled eggs’ in their house and sent her to ‘Jesus camp’ where the I Kissed a Girl singer was encouraged to ‘pray the gay away’

The couple appeared on American Idol to talk about Katy's childhood memories. In 2017 Katy reflected on how her sexual lyrics had caused controversy in her relationship with the two preachers

The couple appeared on American Idol to talk about Katy’s childhood memories. In 2017 Katy reflected on how her sexual lyrics had caused controversy in her relationship with the two preachers 

The couple believe that the Holy Spirit is within them and they believe in ‘the word of wisdom, the word of knowledge, faith, gifts of healing, working miracles, prophecy, discerning of spirits, and various kinds of tongues.’

Perry has spoken about how she clashed with her parents in the past over their religious views, but that they now respect each other and live in relative harmony.

In 2017 she reflected on how her sexual lyrics had caused controversy in her relationship with the two preachers.

In her single Bon Appétit, the 36-year-old singer says in one lyric that she is ‘spread like a buffet’.

‘We all come from different places… you can have your belief system, nobody is telling you to not believe your beliefs but you can also come from a space of love,’ she said when asked about the raunchy line in an interview. ‘That’s what my family and I exercise all the time.’

Bon Appétit isn’t the only song that has raised eyebrows in the Perry family, with her 2008 hit I Kissed A Girl also ruffling her parents’ feathers.

‘I was a little concerned, yeah, because I thought my ministry after 30-something years is over,’ Keith said in Perry’s 2012 documentary Katy Perry: Part of Me.

Last year the singer told Women Working about the difficulties faced by her family, saying that while she acknowledges their experiences, her journey is a lot more spiritual.

Though she has Jesus tattooed on her arm, she said she prefers to interpret him and his message of love and equality personally.

‘My mom has prayed for me my entire life, hoping I’d come back to God,’ she said. ‘I never left Him, I was just a little bit secular. I was more materialistic and more career-driven.

‘But now that I’m in my 30s, it’s more about spirituality and heart wholeness. Oh, my God. We put our parents—I’m only speaking for me, from my experience—I put my parents through hell and back and back!’.

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