WHY: Just days after Hurricane Irma hit the Sunshine State, actor and humanitarian Gary Sinise is traveling to Florida to visit and bring much-needed musical relief to service members and their families stationed in and/or providing hurricane relief in Florida.
On Friday, September 29, Sinise will venture to Melbourne, where he and the Lt. Dan Band will perform a free, USO concert at the Maxwell King Performing Arts Center exclusively for the Patrick Air Force Base community. The following day, he and the band will journey to Eglin Air Force Base – the temporary home base for hundreds of service men and women providing aid for areas affected by Irma – to perform another free USO concert. The two-day visit will mark Sinise’s 98th USO tour in 14 years. Both shows are open to military ID holders and their guests, and are sponsored by the Gary Sinise Foundation.
Joining Sinise as a Force Behind the ForcesSM is the USO, which deployed multiple Mobile USOs to Florida to support relief efforts and even increased assistance at local USO centers to aid military evacuees, deployed troops and service members passing through. In addition, the Gary Sinise Foundation launched a 2017 Hurricane Relief Fund to help veteran and first-responder communities affected by the horrific storms. Despite these efforts, thousands of service men and women are still deployed in the Gulf region and Southeast to help those whose lives have been devastated. To help the USO respond to service members’ needs in these disaster areas, visit USO.org. To learn more about Sinise’s 2017 Hurricane Relief Fund, go to garysinisefoundation.org.
For more than a decade, Sinise has been a dedicated USO supporter entertaining more than 397,000 service members and their families stationed at 60 bases in 17 countries and countless states. Volunteering with the USO since 2003, he has participated in 97 USO tours (i.e. 76 with the Lt. Dan Bandand 21 tours by himself). For more information about the USO and USO entertainment tours, visit uso.org.
About the USO:
The USO strengthens America’s military service members by keeping them connected to family, home and country, throughout their service to the nation. At hundreds of locations worldwide, we are united in our commitment to connect our service members and their families through countless acts of caring, comfort, and support. The USO is a private, non-profit organization, not a government agency. Our programs, services and entertainment tours are made possible by the American people, support of our corporate partners and the dedication of our volunteers and staff.
In addition to individual donors and corporate sponsors, the USO is supported by President’s Circle Partners: AT&T, Bob & Dolores Hope Foundation, Clark Construction Group, LLC, The Coca-Cola Company, FedEx, Jeep, Johnson & Johnson, Kroger, NFL, Southern New Hampshire University and Four-Star Partners: Altria, BIC, ConAgra Foods, GEICO, Harris Teeter, Lockheed Martin, Microsoft, TKS, USAA and the Wawa Foundation. We are also supported through the United Way and Combined Federal Campaign (CFC-11381). To join us in this important mission, and to learn more about the USO, please visit uso.org.
About Gary Sinise and the Gary Sinise Foundation
For nearly forty years, Gary Sinise has stood as an advocate of America’s service members. His passion in this area was born from his family’s deep roots in military service and from a desire to contribute following the attacks on September 11, 2001. His portrayal of ‘Lt. Dan Taylor‘ in the landmark film Forrest Gump formed an enduring connection with servicemen and women throughout the military community. After several USO handshake tours in 2003, Sinise formed the “Lt. Dan Band” in early 2004 and began entertaining troops serving at home and abroad. The band is now a program of the Gary Sinise Foundation and performs close to 30 shows a year for military bases, charities and fundraisers supporting wounded heroes, Gold Star families, veterans and troops around the world.
In 2011, Sinise established the Gary Sinise Foundation. Its mission is to further serve and honor our nation’s defenders, veterans, first responders, their families and those in need by creating and supporting unique programs that entertain, educate, inspire, strengthen, and build communities. In recognition of his humanitarian work and philanthropic endeavors on behalf of our nation’s military community, Sinise has earned countless distinguished awards including the Bob Hope Award for Excellence in Entertainment; the Spirit of the USO Award; the Dwight D. Eisenhower Award; the Spirit of Hope Award; and the Presidential Citizens Medal, the second-highest civilian honor awarded to citizens for exemplary deeds performed in service of the nation, among others. To learn more about the Gary Sinise Foundation, please visit www.GarySiniseFoundaiton.org
Shows were at Patrick Air Force Base and Eglin Air Force Base communities Sept. 29 and 30
For USO – Oname Thompson, c: (703) 386-1170,
othompson@uso.org
For Gary Sinise Foundation – Staci Wolfe, o: (323) 939-7535
staci_wolfe@polarispr.com and Greg Longstreet, o: (323) 939-7535
greg_longstreet@polarispr.com