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lawrencelefcort
Aug 14
9 min read

Updated: Sep 8

Flame of Hope presents

From Hiroshima to Hope: Descendants of WWII Leaders Bring Sacred Flame Back to Japan for Peace Pilgrimage

Photo credit: Flags & Moss Photography / Magnus Dennis

JAPAN – In a deeply symbolic act of remembrance and reconciliation, descendants of the world’s most prominent World War II leaders will arrive in Japan in September 2025, to continue the HOPE80 Global Peace Pilgrimage, carrying the Flame of Hope — a sacred fire formed from 16 historic peace flames including the embers from Hiroshima.

The journey marks 80 years since the end of World War II and brings together grandchildren and great-grandchildren of former enemies, now walking side-by-side in peace. The international delegation includes:

Lucy Sandys, great-granddaughter of Winston Churchill
Tushar Gandhi, great-grandson of Mahatma Gandhi
Clifton Truman Daniel, grandson of U.S. President Harry S. Truman
Hidetoshi Tojo, great-grandson of Prime Minister Hideki Tojo
Jennifer Teege, granddaughter of Nazi commander Amon Göth and author of My Grandfather Would Have Shot Me

Together, they are delivering a powerful message:

“Yesterday’s enemies are today’s friends.”

A Sacred Flame Born from Tragedy

The Flame of Hope was conceived in 2014 by Japanese healer and visionary Ryokyu Endo, after a transformative moment with a young Palestinian boy who had lost both legs in a bombing. Struck by grief, Ryokyu prayed that no child should ever suffer like that again. From this prayer, the Flame of Hope was born.

The Flame of Hope now contains embers from:

The Hiroshima Atomic Bomb Memorial Flame
The Eternal Flame of Jesus in Jerusalem
The Sacred Kiezu-no-hi Flame in Japan (burning for 1,200+ years)
The Buddha’s birthplace in Lumbini
And 12 other sacred peace sites

Today, it carries the prayers of over 675,000 people, including His Holiness Pope Leo, who publicly blessed the HOPE80 delegation in June, and His Holiness the Dalai Lama. The flame now burns eternally in Lumbini, and soon in Bethlehem, with a long-term vision to bring it to Mecca.

A Return to Japan’s Sacred Ground

Now, the Flame of Hope returns to Japan — not only to Hiroshima and Nagasaki, but also to the Osaka World Expo, where the delegation will mark the UN International Day of Peace on September 21.

“As Gandhi’s great-grandson, walking in Hiroshima is both painful and sacred,” said Tushar Gandhi. “We cannot change the past, but we can transform its meaning.”

“We carry this flame not as politicians, but as grandchildren of war, choosing peace,” said Lucy Sandys.

While in Japan, the group will meet government officials, local peace leaders, survivors, and young people — uniting across generations to share a message of hope and healing.

From the Vatican to Glastonbury to Japan

The HOPE80 tour has already seen powerful milestones, including:

A papal blessing from Pope Leo during the General Audience at the Vatican, in which he said, ““We must not get used to war! War is always a defeat. Nothing is lost with peace. Everything can be (lost) with war.”
A visit to UK Parliament, where the delegation met MPs to share their message of reconciliation
Addressing the Second Interparliamentary Conference on Interfaith Dialogue in Rome.
Opening the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury Festival 2025, lighting the fires alongside peace activists and festival organisers
Recreating the iconic Abbey Road Beatles crossing as a symbol of harmony through music and memory
Participating in the Hiroshima 80th Memorial Lantern Ceremony hosted by the Japanese Culture Center in Chicago, USA

Key Moments of the HOPE80 Japan Pilgrimage will include:

Tuesday, September 9 – The pilgrimage will begin in Fukushima, where delegates will be welcomed by the Mayor of Hanamachi during a special reception at 11:00 AM. A peace and hope dialogue panel and music performance will take place from 6:00-7:00 PM at Yuyu Land Hanawa.
Wednesday, September 10 – The delegation will host a press conference at the Japanese Press Club in Tokyo at 3:30 PM, sharing the vision and mission of HOPE80 with national media.
Friday, September 12 – Press reception and peace panel at 6:30 PM at Hotel Mielparque Hiroshima.
Saturday, September 13 – In Hiroshima, the delegation will meet with the Mayor at 4:00 PM, and participate in a commemorative ceremony at Hiroshima Peace Park, attended by Hibakusha—survivors and descendants of the atomic bombing.
Sunday, September 14 - Lecture and panel discussion organized by UNITAR at the International Conference Hall, Dahlia (1-5 Nakajima-chō, Naka Ward, Hiroshima City, within Peace Memorial Park) at 12:30 PM.
September 14–18 – The delegates will then undertake a four-day Peace Cycling Pilgrimage from Hiroshima to Nagasaki, carrying the Flame of Hope across the Japanese countryside.
Thursday, September 18 – Press reception and meeting the Mayor of Sasebo at 3:30 PM.
Friday, September 19 – In Nagasaki, the HOPE80 delegates will hold a prayer and flower offering ceremony at Nagasaki Peace Park.
Sunday, September 21 – The pilgrimage will culminate in Osaka with a peace panel discussion at the Osaka World Expo, at 5:00 PM, in celebration of World Peace Day.
Monday, September 22 - Concluding ceremony at Nanzenji Okunoin temple waterfall in Kyoto to pray for world peace.

“By acting as living examples for peace, we hope to carry our message across nations,” says Lucy Sandys, great-granddaughter of Sir Winston Churchill. “Our ancestors were once enemies—but we are now friends, united by a shared vision and by the Flame of Hope. Together, we are writing a new and brighter chapter in human history.”

The journey continues—igniting hope, healing memory, and building peace for the generations to come.

HOPE80 has secured sponsorship from a diverse range of institutional and corporate partners from around the world, including:

Repeace │USA
The Memnosyne Institute
PositiveTV
Hotel VM Roma
The Japan Accommodation and Lodging Foundation

Other HOPE80 stops throughout 2025 include:

Israel-Palestine (July 2025) – The People’s Summit, Jerusalem
The Netherlands (August 2025) – World War II Joint Memorial Ceremony
Austria (August 2025) – Interfaith Peace Prayer, Diocese Eisenstadt, Vienna
USA (August 2025) – Hiroshima & Nagasaki Memorial, Chicago
Japan (September 2025) – World Expo Forum, Osaka

“My great-grandfather was President of the United States when the atomic bomb was dropped on Japan,” says Clifton Truman Daniel. “He, nor I, would want that to happen again.”

Also joining the tour will be Ms Jennifer Teege, the black granddaughter of SS Nazi concentration camp commander Amon Göth, and author of the international best-selling book My Grandfather Would Have Shot Me: A Black Woman Discovers Her Family’s Nazi Past.

Guiding the journey is the Flame of Hope, originally lit at two Papal Masses in Japan in 2019. Formed from sixteen sacred flames—including those of Bethlehem and Jerusalem—it now carries the prayers and aspirations of over 675,000 people worldwide. The Flame seeks to create unity and understanding among people of all religions, nationalities, ideologies, and beliefs.

Also launching in September 2025, the Flame of Hope app is a global, community-driven platform designed to inspire, heal, and uplift. Every action taken within the app contributes to a positive impact. As users engage, they earn Impact Points, which are automatically converted into food and essential supplies for underserved communities around the world. Available on Google Play and the App Store.

Notes to editor:

Bios of each descendant:

Tushar Gandhi

Great-grandson of Mahatma Gandhi. Writer and the founder of the Mahatma Gandhi Foundation. He played in the films Hey Raam (directed by Kamal Hassan) and Road to Sangam. His book, Let's Kill Gandhi, was a bestseller in India for several weeks. In 2019, he was appointed to the board of the Gandhi Research Foundation.

Lucy Sandys

Great-granddaughter of Sir Winston Churchill. After studying at university in Italy, Lucy spent time volunteering in Brazil, working with street children and now works as teacher of English to international students, and those with additional needs. She has a degree in modern languages and has recently completed her CELTA and a PGCert in SEN and Inclusion.

Through her experiences, and growing up with a knowledge of the history surrounding her great-grandfather, Winston Churchill, Lucy is keen to further the cause of peace at all levels in whatever way she can.

Clifton Truman Daniel

His grandfather gave the order. The sky over Hiroshima burned. Yet Clifton, the eldest grandson of Harry S. Truman, chooses a different path—one of listening, healing, and standing with survivors to fight for a world free from nuclear war.

In 2012, after attending the Peace Memorial Ceremonies in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Clifton acted to support the hibakusha in Hiroshima. He is the author of Growing Up with My Grandfather Harry S. Truman.

Hidetoshi Tojo

Great grandson of former Japanese Prime Minister Hideki Tojo. Mr Tojo is a critic, businessman, and a researcher on shrines and Shintoism. When he was in the fourth grade of elementary school, his mother took him to see a movie about the Tokyo Trials, and he became keenly aware that he is a descendant of Hideki Tojo.

In elementary school, he had a traumatic experience when a teacher on the verge of retirement, who knew Hideki Tojo, ridiculed him for his surname. Currently, he is the president of the General Incorporated Association for the Promotion of International Culture. He is the author of several books, including Shrine Tourism.

Jennifer Teege

Granddaughter of SS Nazi concentration camp commander Amon Göth. Born to German and Nigerian parents, Ms. Teege was placed in an orphanage at four weeks old, grew up with her adoptive parents from the age of seven, and later graduated from Tel Aviv University in Israel.

One day, she found a photo of her birth mother in the library and began researching, and traveling back and forth between Israel and Poland. She eventually unraveled the secret of her origins and was shocked. After facing an unbearable amount of pain, she wrote two books, including My Grandfather Would Have Shot Me: A Black Woman Discovers Her Family’s Nazi Past, which became an international bestseller.

Magali Brosh

Magali Brosh is the daughter of a highly decorated pilot of the Israeli army. Her mother survived the Holocaust and emigrated to Israel after the Second World War. Magali is a Tao Shiatsu therapist and teacher and the Middle East Flame of Hope Ambassador.

In 2015, the Flame of Hiroshima arrived in Palestine and Israel, and as a member of an international Flame of Hope delegation, Magali supported and encouraged the wish for peace. The Flame of Hope was brought to Israel in 2023 to be safeguarded as a symbol for a bright future for the region and to light occasions for peace in the Middle East. Magali is a human rights activist for Palestinian people and Israelis, as well as a mother and grandmother.

EXTRA NOTES:

HOPE80: Yesterday’s Enemies – Today’s Friends

In March 2025, in Lumbini, Nepal, the Flame of Hope was inaugurated as an Eternal Flame next to the birthplace of the Buddha. In June 2025, the descendants visited the Vatican in Rome and the Glastonbury Music Festival. In the fall of 2025, the descendants will visit Hiroshima, Japan and bring the Flame of Hope to where the first atomic bomb was dropped.

The Flame of Hope carries the embers of history and the light of a shared future. It brings together:

- The Eternal Peace Flame of Lumbini, Nepal, birthplace of the Buddha

- The 1,200-year-old Flame of Kukai, Japan

- The Peace Light of Bethlehem**

- The 450-year-old Flame of Honganji*

- And even embers from the Hiroshima atomic bomb site*

Each of these flames carries a story of endurance, resilience, and, most importantly, the unbreakable human spirit as do the Descendants of World War II global leaders.

Yesterday’s Enemies - Today's friends. This powerful message reminds us that while history cannot be changed, the future is ours to shape. We must not remain bound by past divisions but instead work together toward a world of peace and mutual understanding. This initiative is more than an event—it is a movement, a call to illuminate the world with compassion, unity, and unwavering hope.

The Japanese Spiritual Band “Aminadabu" provides music from the depths of the spiritual universe and will give a concert on Park Stage at the Glastonbury festival on Thursday 26, 2025, together with Tushar Gandhi, great grandson of Mahatma Gandhi and Lucy Sandys great daughter of Winston Churchill.

Hope 80 video featuring descendants of WWII global leaders: https://youtu.be/s5cvD0ucoGc?si=_r-lzYUlY0GY8IRA