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Holly Robinson Peete, best known for her roles in “21 Jump Street,” “Hangin’ with Mr. Cooper,” and “For Your Love,” along with her husband Rodney Peete, a former NFL quarterback, were honored with the prestigious Good Sam Award by the Rotary Club of Los Angeles Foundation during their annual luncheon on Friday, October 24, 2025. The event took place at the historic Biltmore Hotel and will celebrate the couple’s remarkable philanthropy through their HollyRod Foundation.
Both Holly Robinson Peete and Rodney Peete have transformed personal challenges into a powerful mission of service. Their HollyRod Foundation emerged from deeply personal experiences: Holly’s father, Matthew Robinson (the original Gordon on “Sesame Street”), battled Parkinson’s disease, and their son RJ was diagnosed with autism at age three. The Hollyrod Foundation is dedicated to raising awareness and providing resources to families with loved ones diagnosed with autism or Parkinson’s disease.
The Good Sam Award honors community leaders who demonstrate bold leadership in advancing human kindness, understanding, and compassion. Named after Dete Meserve’s novel and Netflix movie, “Good Sam,” the award will be presented to Holly and Rodney by Meserve herself, the first recipient of this honor.
“Service Above Self is one of the guiding tenets of Rotary International, and the Good Sam Award honor individuals who have lived that ideal through their words and their deeds,” said Paul Jacques, President of the Rotary Club of Los Angeles. “Rodney Peete and Holly Robinson Peete are shining examples of Service Above Self, and we are honored and grateful to celebrate their efforts to create a more open, inclusive, and compassionate world for those living with Autism and Parkinson’s.”
Holly’s powerful philosophy, “I wouldn’t change my son for the world, but I would change the world for my son,” perfectly embodies the Good Sam Award’s mission of transforming personal experience into global service.
Holly Robinson Peete is an actress, singer, author, talk show host, activist, and philanthropist. Best known for her roles on popular TV shows like “21 Jump Street” and “Hangin’ with Mr. Cooper,” her acting career has spanned over 30 years. Currently, she hosts the Peacock series “Queens Court” and its spin-off, “Kings Court.” Her other credits include the 1992 miniseries “The Jacksons: An American Dream” and the sitcom “For Your Love.” Peete’s highly praised “Weather Hunters” airs on PBS Kids, and her children’s book, “My Brother Charlie,” earned her an NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work. In 2022, Holly received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Rodney Peete,
The new Good Sam Award statuette is designed by Sir Daniel Winn, a Vietnamese American master artist and philanthropist who was knighted in 2018 for his cultural and humanitarian contributions. It will be unveiled at the awards luncheon. Winn is known for his artistic style, “Existential Surrealism,” which explores human compassion and kindness through surrealist compositions, making Winn the ideal person to create the Good Sam Award, honoring those who promote human understanding and compassion in the Los Angeles community.
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