From the HeartSupport Staff: How You Made 2025 Unforgettable
“Get ready for an incredible year. Keep reading. Keep believing. Keep sending us. We’re positioned to Heal the Scene in a bigger way than ever before.”
We’ve had the chance to share with you some of the numbers of impact from 2025, which are incredibly significant: 470+ fans opened up about their mental health at festivals, 1,800+ fans replied, 135 individuals were engaged with Support Calls, and at least 2,000 commenters online received supportive replies.
All in all? That represents more than $729,000 of total mental health support impact.
Every number only matters as much as the people it represents. Our staff feels that deeply: every impact statistic represents a life’s calling, and the individual conversations that are fulfilling it. From team HeartSupport to the scene, here is how your support has moved us this year.
Bryce Maopolski, Development Assistant
What was the most meaningful part of being involved with HeartSupport in 2025:
Our in-person support. This year, we dove headfirst into supporting fans at shows, and each event was a transformative experience. Being face-to-face with fans, sharing tearful hugs, letting them know it's okay to shed the weight they carry, and letting them know they are not alone truly showed the power that deep, interpersonal connection holds. Every time, this connection was brought about because of music — how absolutely beautiful! Every festival brought about dozens of stories of transformation, new life, and healing. That in-person presence truly healed the scene in every corner we went to.
What are you most excited about in HeartSupport's future in 2026?
The continued growth of our physical outreach. As we activate at more festivals, our impact widens, and the scene heals more and more. As we look into 2026, plans to be in-person with fans are only growing: more festivals, more club shows, and more tours with bands will lead to more healing and more hearts supported in 2026.
Reece Maopolski, Program Assistant
What was the most meaningful part of being involved with HeartSupport in 2025:
Seeing our Support Calls program expand over 3x what we started with — that has been such a powerful reminder of how committed people are to heal the scene. Our goal was to reach 60 active matches by the end of this year, so I was blown away when we reached that goal only 9 months into the year!
Now, we are facilitating over 70 active matches. Those numbers are evidence of people's hearts for others, and the Support Call program continues to inspire me every day.
What are you most excited about in HeartSupport's future in 2026?
Since we experienced so many beautiful moments with fans at festivals across the country in 2025, I'm thrilled to see how we'll support more fans in person throughout the 2026 festival season and beyond. Our Support Wall program is going to be such an exciting new way for us to reach fans in-person throughout the whole year, so I can't wait to see the impact of that year-round, on-the-grounds support.
Dr. Michelle Saari, Director, Internal Affairs
What was the most meaningful part of being involved with HeartSupport in 2025?
Having been on the Board of Directors and with HeartSupport for the past decade, I am always struck by the genuine people whom we get to connect with. The people who have worked for, volunteered at, and met HeartSupport on the road are incredible. What a year!
It continues to mean the world to me to see music fans creating a supportive community. I am also excited about the ongoing and new band partnerships that we continued to grow this year. THANK YOU to all who are a part of our community and those who so generously donate and choose to invest their time here. You have made this a memorable year.
What are you most excited about in HeartSupport's future in 2026?
Changes and growth. Heartsupport is constantly adjusting to meet the needs of the people we serve. I am excited to see the community grow, bands continue to connect with fans in new and meaningful ways, and the lives that can be changed.
Nate Hilpert, Executive Director
What was the most meaningful part of being involved with HeartSupport in 2025?
As we look back on 2025, one feeling keeps coming up as we scroll through the photos and read the stories from the road: wow.
Look at the amount of love that was poured out. We went to so many places, met so many people, and witnessed so many moments of courage and honesty.
And the thing we feel most deeply is gratitude, because we couldn’t have gone anywhere if we weren’t sent. You sent us. Our donors are literally the reason we were able to show up.
Back in the early days, we didn’t have donors, so we sold t-shirts to get from place to place. It was a beautiful way to bootstrap, but it pulled time and energy away from the very thing we wanted to give our full attention to: the fans.
This year was different.
In 2025, our community pre-funded every single activation. You gave, so we got to go.
We showed up with no sales pitch. No ulterior motive. No tip jar. Nothing except love.
We held space. We sat with people while they cried. We met them in moments when they needed support... and in moments when they never expected it. We could only do what we did because of you.
Thank you.
Thank you for the lives you enabled HeartSupport to impact.
Thank you for the fans you enabled us to reach.
Thank you for the stories that will forever be different because you gave.
And we’re just getting started.
What are you most excited about in HeartSupport's future in 2026?
In 2025, we went from 1 Support Wall to 4. In 2026, we’re going from 4 to 24.
You read that right.
Get ready for an incredible year. Keep reading. Keep believing. Keep sending us.
We’re positioned to Heal the Scene in a bigger way than ever before.
If you’d like to help kickstart the work we’re preparing for in 2026, we’d be honored by your support. We’re eager to go, and grateful beyond words that you send us.
We can’t wait!
