Dreams really do come true.
More than 1,000 kids of fallen soldiers got to experience the magic of Walt Disney World thanks to actor Gary Sinise over the weekend.
On Saturday, the Forrest Gump star flew around 1,700 people to Orlando, Fla. for a five-day vacation, in partnership with American Airlines, to thank them for their family member’s service in the American military.
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The 64-year-old took to Twitter to share the heartwarming charitable trip with his followers, posting four photos of various beneficiaries of the outreach program with the Gary Sinise Foundation.
“Today begins our GSF Snowball Express #14. Over 1000 Gold Star Children travel with surviving parent or guardian, over 1,750 in all, via our travel partner @AmericanAir to Disney World as part of our @GarySiniseFound Snowball Express program,” Sinise wrote.
The trip is part of Sinise’s Snowball Express program, which provides trips for families who’ve lost members in the military.
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It began in 2006 when a letter written by a fallen soldier, with rules to only open it in the event of his death. In the letter, he wrote of his wish for his family to go to Disneyland. With that, the event was born.
It’s no surprise that the trip has garnered a lot of attention and praise on Twitter.
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“May God bless you for what you do to make sure these families are not forgotten,” one person wrote.
“My niece and nephew are part of this trip this year,” another tweeted. “I’m so grateful to your organization. They are so excited and it’s great to see them so happy.”
From 2001 to 2012 — spanning the beginning of the war in Afghanistan and to the end of the war in Iraq, otherwise known as the Global War on Terror — 6,852 lives have been lost, per the Department of Defense and Department of Veterans Affairs.
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