{"id":2272,"date":"2025-06-14T03:47:54","date_gmt":"2025-06-14T03:47:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/captainnews.info\/?p=2272"},"modified":"2025-06-14T03:49:42","modified_gmt":"2025-06-14T03:49:42","slug":"actor-gary-sinise-took-1000-kids-of-fallen-military-heroes-to-disney-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/captainnews.info\/?p=2272","title":{"rendered":"Actor Gary Sinise Took 1,000 Kids Of Fallen Military Heroes To Disney World"},"content":{"rendered":"

“We wanna take care of these kids and make sure they know we don’t forget.”<\/h2>\n
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\"Gary<\/p>\n

Gary Sinise Foundation<\/span>Actor Gary Sinise and his foundation treated 1,000 kids (more than 1,750 family members total, including surviving parents) of fallen military heroes to the trip of a lifetime.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

The families of fallen soldiers were treated to a special holiday trip thanks to the\u00a0Gary Sinise Foundation. And where better to bring them than the happiest place on Earth: Disney World.<\/p>\n

According to\u00a0CBS Los Angeles<\/em><\/a>, actor Gary Sinise \u2014 who founded the non-profit organization in 2011 \u2014 and his team organized the trip in December 2018 as a way to support the families, especially children, of fallen armed services members. All in all, the foundation packed 15 airplanes with these families and sent them off on the trip of a lifetime.<\/p>\n

About 1,750 people (1,000 of them kids) in total from 15 locations across the country were treated to a five-night vacation in Orlando, Florida. The Disney World trip was part of the organization\u2019s annual Snowball Express program which aims to connect families of fallen veterans and help them heal.<\/p>\n

\u201cEach one of these children who are going on these airplanes have lost a parent in military services \u2013 either combat related or illness or unfortunately suicide sometimes,\u201d Sinise said. \u201cWe wanna take care of these kids and make sure they know we don\u2019t forget.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\"Little<\/p>\n

Gary Sinise Foundation\/Instagram<\/span>One little girl reacts with delight during part of her Disney World vacation courtesy of the Gary Sinise foundation.<\/span><\/p>\n

The holiday festivities began the moment the families arrived at Los Angeles International Airport, where a cheerful Santa Claus landed in style via helicopter with his wife, Mrs. Claus. The children took photos with Santa and received gifts.<\/p>\n

\u201cI [didn\u2019t know] that he would be here in a helicopter \u2013 I thought he was gonna be jumping out of there in a parachute,\u201d Desmond, whose father Army Sgt. Myles Penix died in 2016, said. The boy and his mother, Jade Penix, were the first of the military families in line to greet Santa.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s just important \u2019cause of all of the bonding that we get to do. He gets to find friends who are just like him, and I get to find ones that have lost just like me,\u201d Mrs. Penix said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s easier when you find people who\u2019ve gone through the same thing. So it\u2019s an amazing experience. All of the different tributes they have, and all of the different balloon releases where I get to write a message to my husband; it\u2019s amazing.\u201d<\/p>\n