Gary Sinise’s Veterans Foundation to Move to Tennessee
By Movieguide® Contributor
Gary Sinise recently announced that he would move his veterans foundation from Los Angeles to Franklin, Tennessee.
The actor noted that he made his decision to relocate partly due to Tennessee’s proximity to other states.
“It will be very, very good to be in a state that’s connected to seven other states, all of them with military bases and many, many veterans and all those communities around Tennessee,” Sinise said. “Having our foundation more centrally located in the country will be a very, very positive thing for the work that we do.”
The Gary Sinise Foundation was established in 2011 and has locations in San Diego and Orlando.
“I’ve been in California for 35 years and was thinking of next steps that might be exciting for the family. We have little grandchildren,” Sinise explained. “I had a lot of friends [in Tennessee]. It’s a great entertainment industry there. They’re very, very supportive of veterans and would be a good place for the foundation and the family.
“I’ve been traveling across the country multiple times a year for decades now. Our move to the Nashville area is going to be a great benefit, not only to the family but to the foundation,” he continued.
“Freedom and security are precious gifts that we, as Americans, should never take for granted,” Sinise said on his website. “We must do all we can to extend our hand in times of need to those who willingly sacrifice each day to provide that freedom and security. While we can never do enough to show gratitude to our nation’s defenders, we can always do a little more.”
Movieguide® previously reported on Sinise’s efforts to aid veterans:
Actor Gary Sinise recently launched The Gary Sinise Foundation Avalon Network, which seeks to aid defenders, veterans, and first responders suffering from post-traumatic stress and TBI (traumatic brain injury).
“It’s critically important to me that our military service members, first responders, and their families all know how deeply we are here for them, we are not going to forget them, and we will always do more to protect and support them,” Sinise told Forbes. “During the past 40 years or so, since my Chicago days working with the Steppenwolf Theatre in the early ‘80s when I was supporting local Vietnam veteran groups there, into the 90’s supporting our wounded after playing Lt. Dan in Forrest Gump, and then post 9/11, 2001 and the terrorist attacks on our country, it’s become my lifelong mission to serve and honor our defenders, veterans, first responders, and their loved ones. I feel blessed to be able to do something and honored that Gary Sinise Foundation is a part of this new Avalon Network initiative.”
Sinise has influenced many with his on-screen performances like FORREST GUMP and faith-based movie I STILL BELIEVE. However, his heart for service has extended beyond acting for many years.
“Back in the 80’s I saw first-hand the struggles our Vietnam veterans, some on my wife’s side of our family, were going through when returning from war to a nation that was divided, and it stuck with me,” Sinise said. “After the war in Vietnam, our veterans did not get the welcome back or the help they so desperately needed following their service.
“I have met too many veterans from that war who are fighting those demons still today, and the lack of support they received upon returning home only amplified this pain. When we began deploying to Afghanistan and Iraq, I felt there was a role for me to play in trying to ensure that today’s veteran would have the support and appreciation they deserved before, during and after the battle.”
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