Look To The Stars News: Gary Sinise

Lady Gaga To Take Part In BGC Charity Day

Thu, 10 Sep 2009 15:30:00 -0000

BGC Partners, a leading international inter-dealer brokerage firm, will hold its fifth annual star-studded BGC Charity Day on Friday, September 11.

BGC is a leading inter-dealer brokerage firm affiliated with Cantor Fitzgerald, the company that suffered the heaviest loss of life during the Twin Towers tragedy in New York on September 11th, 2001. BGC is proud to continue its legacy of fundraising on behalf of a wide range of charitable causes, with proceeds this year going to charities such as the Wounded Warrior Project, Boomer Esiason Foundation, The Children’s Institute, Mercy Center, The Valerie Fund, Childhelp USA, Garden of Dreams, Jubilee Center, Bone Marrow Foundation, Coast to Coast Against Cancer and many more.

Every year, the event offers the chance for celebrities to act as financial brokers and help raise money by conducting real trades with BGC’s clients (the major banks and investment banks) over the phone from the trading floor (alongside a licensed broker). From these trades, worth millions of dollars in bonds, foreign exchange, derivatives and other products, BGC will aim to surpass last year’s total of $8 million globally, which brought the four-year total raised on BGC’s Charity Day to $23 million.

This year will see a host of stars take part, including Whoopi Goldberg, Anthony Edwards, Chace Crawford, Charles Grodin, Gary Sinise, Lady Gaga, Kathleen Turner and many more.

For a full list of benefiting charities around the world and more information, click here.

Gary Sinise Awarded Presidential Citizens Medal

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 15:30:00 -0000

Written by Tim Saunders

Actor Gary Sinise was at the White House last week to receive the Presidential Citizens Medal from George W. Bush.

The actor and musician was awarded the medal for his support of US troops and wounded veterans.

Sinise formed The Lt. Dan Band (named after the character he played in the 1994 movie Forrest Gump) with Kimo Williams, a Chicago-based composer, and plays 30-40 shows a year, mostly for the United Service Organization, a non-profit organization whose mission is to provide US troops stationed around the world with morale, welfare, and recreation-based services. In 2004, he founded Operation Iraqi Children, a nonprofit group dedicated to helping the U.S. military distribute school supplies in the war-stricken country, with “Seabiscuit” author Laura Hillenbrand.

“Gary is a true friend of the American soldier,“ said Michael Yon, a Special Forces vet and war journalist. “He does not hesitate to travel into war zones to express his admiration and personal support for those who defend us. He visits wounded soldiers, some of whom I personally know. All love him. Soldiers from privates to generals admire Gary for his dedication to a cause greater than any of us. Gary’s dedication went much further. He personally supported sending millions of dollars worth of school and clothing supplies to Iraqi children. I saw this effort with my own eyes. Gary Sinise is a Great American.”

“I have seen Iraqi kids climbing on our soldiers and hugging them and kissing them,” said Sinise. “I have seen their smiling faces and their attempts to say ‘I love you’ in broken English. The folks I saw had hope in their eyes and gratitude in their hearts for what was done for them.”

A one-hour special about The Lt. Dan Band’s work entertaining troops stationed overseas will be televised on Fox News on January 10. More information on the band and their charity appearances can be found at www.ltdanband.com.

Glenn Close And Quincy Jones Share Inspire Awards

Thu, 27 Nov 2008 13:30:00 -0000

Written by Tim Saunders

AARP Magazine, the world’s largest-circulation magazine, has announced the recipients of its fifth annual Inspire Awards.

Glenn Close and Quincy Jones will be presented with awards for their humanitarian work at a special ceremony on December 8 at the National Museum of Women in the Arts in Washington, D.C.

Close is being recognized for her work as a mental health advocate, especially her involvement with Fountain House, a nonprofit organization that she discovered while searching for help for her relatives.

“I’ve seen mental illness firsthand,” she said. “I know there are millions of people affected, and it’s not just the patient who is suffering. It’s everyone around them.”

Next year she will front a national advertising campaign intended to diminish the stigma of mental illness.

“When I first thought about doing this, I wondered if people would think that I was mentally ill,” says Close. “Then I thought, ’What’s the alternative? Not to do it?’”

Musical icon Quincy Jones’ honor is the result of his work in the fight against global poverty. His Quincy Jones Foundation helps children around the world overcome poverty as well as assisting with programs to eradicate malaria in Africa, developing housing in post-apartheid South Africa, and establishing youth centers in conflict-ridden areas.

Other honorees this year include Richard M. Cohen (Voice for the Chronically Ill), Martin Eakes (Lending to the Poor), Katherine Freund (Transportation Activist), Peter Gallagher (Alzheimer’s Advocate), David E. Hayes-Bautista, Ph.D. (Latino-Health Researcher), Susan Love, M.D. (Cancer Crusader), Rose Nakamura (Compassionate Caregiver), and Alma Powell (Children’s Advocate).

“These leaders set a great example for all on how passion can support and spark change in creative, innovative ways. Their stories are truly inspiring,” said Nancy Graham, Vice President and Editor of AARP The Magazine.

Former honorees include Richard Gere, Gary Sinise, Robert DeNiro, and Michael J. Fox.

Profiles for all of the honorees and more information about the event can be found at www.aarpmagazine.org.

Joe Mantegna Tees Off For Special Needs

Wed, 26 Mar 2008 10:39:31 -0000

Written by Elizabeth Willoughby

This summer Joe Mantegna will hold his eighth Celebrity Golf Classic tournament benefiting Home Ownership Made Easy (H.O.M.E.), an organization that provides housing for the disabled in California.

As the father of a special-needs child, Mantegna understands the anxieties and the barriers for disabled adults in finding self-sufficiency.

“What these individuals face is a lifetime of worry and uncertainty as to what the quality of their lives will be,” said the 60-year-old Tony Award-winning actor. “The lifelong concern of safe and affordable housing for those whose specific disabilities puts them out of reach of housing opportunities the rest of us have is a daunting one.”

Founded in 1989, H.O.M.E. helps developmentally disabled people and their families achieve independence. Through their two programs, H.O.M.E. either rents apartments to individuals at an undervalued rate to allow that the balance of their income is enough to provide for themselves, or walks first time home buyers through the planning, purchase, and ownership processes providing key advice, counseling, education, and contacts at every step.

Having seen H.O.M.E.’s programs at work, Mantegna is looking forward to the June tournament, as are actors and golf aficionados Don Cheadle, Andy Garcia, Joe Pesci, and Gary Sinise. The annual event, which includes a day of golf, a cocktail party, and both silent and live auctions, provides over 10 percent of H.O.M.E.’s annual budget.

Gary Sinise to Play Benefit Concert

Thu, 09 Aug 2007 08:38:13 -0000

Written by Tim Saunders

Gary Sinise is to play a concert to raise funds for a new memorial wall in Brooklyn on August 11. The Oscar nominated actor will join his rock group, The Lt. Dan Band, on stage at the Whitman Theater for an evening of entertainment, including a catalog of songs that covers everything from Jimi Hendrix to Bruce Springsteen to Evanescence.

Sinise, who plays bass guitar in the 11 piece band, hopes the gig will raise over $100,000 for the Brooklyn Wall of Remembrance, a special monument planned for Keyspan Park. The 30 by 12 foot granite wall will honor the 155 police and fire department workers from the area killed on 9/11. It will also incorporate a 6 foot high bronze statue, designed by sculptor Jamie Lester.

“It’s a beautiful memorial,” said Sinise, who has donated some of his own money to the project. “For the families of those fallen heroes, it’s going to be very, very meaningful.”

The Lt. Dan Band (named after the character Sinise played in the 1994 movie Forrest Gump) was formed by Sinise and Kimo Williams, a Chicago-based composer, and plays 30-40 shows a year. Many of their concerts benefit good causes. They have also completed five tours for the United Service Organization, a non-profit organization whose mission is to provide US troops stationed around the world with morale, welfare, and recreation-based services.

“I try to do shows that can help various charities,” said Sinise, who is aware of the pulling power of his celebrity status and takes advantage of it to attract audiences. “Or support the troops.”

Sinise’s benefit work does not stop with his involvement in the band, and he has recently co-founded Operation Iraqi Children with Laura Hillenbrand (author of “Seabiscuit: An American Legend”) in an effort to help educate the young people of Iraq.

More information on the band and their charity appearances can be found at www.ltdanband.com.

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