Pete was my little brother - I founded Pete's Dragons along with Ditsy Dragon (I say it was her idea, she says it was mine) on the day that I was informed of Pete's death. Ditsy and I decided that day to cycle Lands End to Twickenham in four days to raise money for the Search and Rescue Teams.
But that was all we decided. It was to be a one off. We never anticipated that each year someone else would come forward with another crazy challenge because they wanted to support Pete's Dragons. In 2014 something changed - we grew fast and gained a large amount of Dragons who made it clear they were here to stay. We had to make a decision, go big or go home? We decided to go big! Enter charitable status, two more trustees, a full calendar and our own projects directly helping those bereaved by suicide.
Pete's Dragons is my inspiration and passion, I meet incredible people willing to go the extra mile, put themselves out, challenge themselves and dedicate huge amounts of time and effort to raise valuable pennies to help others. It reminds me daily of what is important and what can be achieved if you set your mind to it. I am so, so proud of what the Dragons have achieved, I look forward to what we will achieve in the future but most importantly for me personally is that Pete's Dragons is such a wonderful positive creation from such a devastating and traumatic event. I know that Pete smiles on us every day.