Leading actor Gary Sinise, who has made helping the nation’s veterans a priority, talked recently about helping to build a home for an Army vet and in the process developing a lasting friendship with him.
Sinise talked about the details of his friendship with Bryan Anderson, who is also the ambassador for the Gary Sinise Foundation, on Fox News’ “One Nation” Saturday.
“Bryan is somebody I met several years ago — gosh, over 15 years ago. He was injured in 2005. He’s a triple-amputee, missing two legs and an arm,” Sinise said.
“We’re both from Illinois, so we kind of connected at Walter Reed when I first met Bryan… After I started my foundation we became friends and he became an ambassador for my foundation,” he continued.
“Recently we held what we call a Walls of Honor ceremony. It’s kind of the midway point in our home-building process, and that’s what you’re seeing on the screen right there,” Sinise continued.
“Bryan is going to have a new home sometime around Veterans Day in Tennessee. We’re building his house in Tennessee. So he’s one of our many recipients of these rise homes that we’re building. And I’m just very, very grateful to have him as a friend and to have known him,” the actor continued.
“He’s been an inspiration. I write about him in my book, and I was privileged to write the foreword to the book that he wrote called ‘No Turning Back.’ He’s a wonderful guy,” he added.
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The actor, who recently moved from Los Angeles to Nashville, is serving again this year as the honorary grand marshal of the National Memorial Day Parade in Washington, D.C., which takes place on Memorial Day itself.
In a separate report, :
Some 5,000 participants are expected to parade down Constitution Avenue before a crowd of 250,000 people on Monday, according to the American Veterans Center in Arlington, Virginia.
Sinise shared personal and deeply felt thoughts with Fox News Digital about how “incredibly important” it is to show support for America’s military and their families today.
“Memorial Day has been a longstanding tradition of remembrance for me and my family,” Sinise told Fox News Digital on Friday. “As a nation, it’s incredibly important to honor the families of the fallen — the heroes who have made the ultimate sacrifice in protecting and defending our country.”
“Through my many travels, visiting combat zones, our wounded in the hospitals and especially spending time with our precious families of our fallen heroes — it has become a personal life mission to honor and remember those who selflessly serve and sacrifice so much,” he continued.
“That is one of the many reasons why I created the Gary Sinise Foundation, because I want all our defender communities, our veterans, service members, first responders and their families who sacrifice alongside them to always know that there are grateful Americans who love and appreciate them,” the actor noted further.
“And we’re here for them before, during and after the battle. When I think about my participation in this year’s Memorial Day Parade, the first parade since before the pandemic, one simple word comes to mind. Gratitude,” he said.
“I am grateful for the opportunity to honor our fallen. I am grateful to support the families of our fallen heroes. And I am grateful for every day that I have — to continue paying it forward to these brave men and women and ensuring that their memory and legacy of service to our country will never be forgotten,” Sinise added.
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