Gary Sinise Goes Out of His Way to Thank First Responders

Hollywood actor Gary Sinise just showed the world what it means to “give back” once again last Saturday when he threw a free concert with his band for first responders and their families in Thousand Oaks, California.

“I just wanted to do something here for my community,” Sinise explained, according to CBS Local.

Sinise desperately wanted to shine the spotlight on the first responders who helped the community in Thousand Oaks cope with the Borderline murders and the deadly Woolsey Fire days later.

“I live in Ventura County. I was here when this terrible thing happened last November. A 1-2 punch in the face,” Sinise said.

This is why Sinise decided to host “A Night of Enjoyment” completely free of charge. The event was not a fundraiser and was instead meant to be a night aimed at bringing smiles to the faces of first responders and their families. Sinise was joined at the concert by John Ondrasik of the one-man group Five For Fighting. Ondrasik is arguably best known for his song “Superman,” which he wrote to honor 9/11 first responders.

One of the attendees at Sinise’s event was Pam Archie, the mother of Sheriff’s Deputy Ron Helus, who was the first responder to reach Borderline and lost his life while trying to save the others. When asked if “A Night of Enjoyment” was working, Archie replied, “It’s working. It’s working.”

“My daughter and my grandson are starting to heal. It’s gonna take a while,” she continued.

“It’s very, very nice to see people actually smiling. And having a good time. It’s been very, very tragic – very hard for these families since November 7th,” added Billy Hutton, a friend of one of the Borderline victims.

Unlike many other stars in Hollywood, Sinise has devoted much of his life to giving back to both members of the military and first responders. Those who know of the work that Sinise has done through The Gary Sinise Foundation will not be surprised that he dropped everything to throw this concert for first responders who desperately needed something to smile about. God bless these first responders, and God bless Gary Sinise for all that he does for the world!