Exclusive: Days of our Lives stars Martha Madison, Stephen Nichols, and cast honor late Drake Hogestyn 

On Saturday, a host of Days of our Lives cast members turned out in Los Angeles to support PanCan PurpleStrike, a fundraiser to help battle pancreatic cancer. Martha Madison (Belle) and Stephen Nichols (Steve) talked to Soap Central about the important event and why so many folks showed up — despite the pouring rain — to support beloved castmate Drake Hogestyn (ex-John), who died of pancreatic cancer last year.

Hogey's Home Runners

"Rain or shine — this is how much Drake means to everybody," Madison told Soap Central. The "Hogey's Home Runners" team came about after PanCan reached out to Madison to share condolences over her TV dad's passing.

"They said, 'We can do something to honor him,'" Madison says. "I said, 'Yeah, let's.'" A slew of cast members showed up at Santa Monica Pier this past weekend to walk and raise awareness and funds for pancreatic cancer.

Dan Feurriegel (EJ) stepped in as Madison's co-captain (after Hogestyn's TV son Eric Martsolf, who plays Eric on Days of our Lives, was unable to attend due to a commitment with his band, The Day Players).

Hogestyn passed away on September 28th at the age of 70. He was one day away from his 71st birthday.

Remembering Drake's Days of our Lives

"Drake deserves every ounce of support he can get, and his family deserves the same," Nichols says. "He was a sweet, beautiful, compassionate man, and we all loved him so, so much. I miss him every day. I pass by his dressing room every day because it's right next to mine."

Nichols shares that Hogestyn's name is still on his door. "I remember him and I bring him to work with me," he says. "It's a wonderful turnout today. Nothing can stop us. It was a beautiful story. Everyone, of course, was committed because everyone loved Drake. That brings an extra element of drama and pathos to the work."

"He was my father-in-law for I don't know how long," Brandon Beemer (Shawn) recalls of Hogestyn. "A lot of people say someone is the nicest person ever, but Drake was the nicest person ever. You never saw anything angry or bad come out of him. Sometimes, you wonder if someone like that is genuine. Drake was genuine."

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Other Days of our Lives cast members who turned out on Saturday included Tamara Braun (ex-Ava), Raven Bowens (Chanel), Kennedy Garcia (Felicity), Tina Huang (Melinda), and Cherie Jimenez (Gabi). Hogey's Home Runners raised $58,234 to help raise awareness and research for pancreatic cancer.

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