This was the year that Love Hope Strength co-founder and President, Mike Peters, became ‘totally free’. A year which has seen an outpouring of grief, sympathy and remembrance combined with positivity, appreciation and a renewed determination to do even more to support others affected by cancer.
During his lifetime, Mike’s resilience in the face of cancer fortified the lives of others living in challenging, uncertain circumstances. Following his death, the resilience demonstrated by his family, friends and fans has provided comfort for others experiencing loss and hardship. 2025 has certainly proven that Mike’s indomitable spirit will live on through the three things he was most passionate about and most proud of: his family; his music and the Love Hope Strength Foundation.
As we enter a new year with hope and gratitude, we would like to pay tribute firstly to Mike’s family. Whilst Mike’s youngest son Evan has spent the past eight months writing music and sharing his own musical talent that he inherited from his father, Dylan has taken on a new role, joining the Love Hope Strength Trustee Board. Both Dylan and Evan will take part in El Camino Rocks, the LHS trek scheduled for April 2026. In 2026, Jules will become President of Love Hope Strength, an honorary role that Mike revelled in holding. Thank you to all the Peters family for continuing to show such dedication to helping and supporting others over the past year.
We also want to say a huge thank you to the many voices across the music industry who expressed their love and respect for Mike by both giving to Love Hope Strength and by shining a light on what Mike achieved through the Foundation. To the thousands of fans, musicians and others who have sent messages, organised your own tributes, fundraisers and activities to celebrate Mike’s life, please know your unparalleled kindness and generosity in 2025 was hugely appreciated.
To the partner organisations, volunteers and professional bodies that we work alongside to carry out Love Hope Strength’s mission, thank you for your understanding, guidance and vision. Mike firmly believed in the power of collaboration. Building close connections with experts across the cancer community continues to be a cornerstone of the Love Hope Strength philosophy. In 2025 over $100,000 was raised in memory of Mike, and in 2026 we we’ll be sharing more on the schemes we’re coproducing with partners to ensure Mike’s legacy will be long lasting and truly impactful, touching the lives of families affected by cancer across the globe for years to come. We’d like to especially thank longstanding partners the Union for International Cancer Control, DKMS, Tumaini La Maisha, and HAAM.
We’d like to recognise three individuals who deserve special recognition for the roles they’ve played in supporting Love Hope Strength’s mission and in embodying the sentiment behind Love Hope Strength in 2025. All three were motivated to do even more this year following the launch of Mike’s One in a Million campaign to register more people on the stem cell donor registry. The Love Hope Strength ‘People of the Year’ for 2025 are:
Rob and Tina Rushing of Punk Rocks Saves Lives (PRSL) in the USA and Dave Hotson in the UK.
Relentless in their pursuit to save lives, Rob and Tina, alongside PRSL volunteers, have driven across the US to register over 10,000 people to the stem cell donor registry this year. Love Hope Strength are proud to support the work of Punk Rock Saves Lives, but this year we have been moved by the ‘extra miles’ Rob and Tina have put in whilst facing their own struggles. Truly inspirational.
Doggedly determined to effect change, Dave has represented Love Hope Strength and partnered with DKMS’s corporate donor recruitment team to increase awareness of stem cell donation. Dave brings energy and passion to his voluntary role, and like Rob and Tina can definitely be described as one in a million.
2026 marks 20 years of the Love Hope Strength Foundation. The Foundation’s Deed was signed back on 23rd November 2006, and Mike, Jules and James Chippendale’s mission from then remains. Whilst no longer with us in person, Mike would certainly be looking on with pride as we all collectively continue to save lives one concert, one step, one helping hand at a time.
As we enter the new year, we’ll continue to take what Mike taught us about living life to the full and apply that to Love Hope Strength, and we encourage you to get involved!
January 2026
– Thursday, 15th: Love Hope Strength Night curated by Chris Summerill, Cardiff, Wales
– Sunday, 18th: Love Hope Strength Solidarity Stroll, Cardiff, Wales
June 2026
Thursday 18th – Sunday 21st: Red Rocks [hikes, music and more], Dyserth, Wales
December 2027
Registration opening soon: Nepal Rocks, 20 years on from Everest Rocks
Thank you all again for your support and solidarity in 2025.
Here’s to 2026, a year filled with even more love, hope and strength,
The Love Hope Strength U.S. Board and U.K. Trustees