He was in a wheelchair only to film “Forrest Gump,” but that was enough. Gary Sinise finished that movie with an even greater commitment to help veterans who, like the character he portrayed, Lt. Dan, had suffered catastrophic injuries.
Sinise is bringing that resolve to the metro area. He and the Lt. Dan Band are coming to Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre in Alpharetta on Nov. 3 to raise money to build custom homes for two disabled veterans — former Marine Cpl. Todd Love of Marietta and former Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael Schlitz of Columbus.
Love, 22, lost both legs and an arm in Afghanistan. Schlitz, 35, suffered burns over 85 percent of his body and lost both arms in Iraq.
They deserve good homes, said Sinise, whose Gary Sinise Foundation supports veterans’ causes.
“One of the hard lessons we learned in Vietnam is how not to treat our vets,” said Sinise, whose band covers everything from Jimi Hendrix to Aretha Franklin to Bruce Springsteen. (He plays bass.) “If veterans are going to go off to serve their country, they ought to be treated with respect and dignity.”
Sinise has entered into a partnership with the Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation to fund the construction nationwide of specially built “smart homes” to suit disabled vets’ special needs.
Love needs a home whose cabinets and counters can be raised or lowered by computer; it also must have doorways wide enough to accommodate a wheelchair, among other features.
Schlitz’s house also needs computerized cabinets and counters, since his prosthetic arms have limited range and can only reach so high. His burned skin also doesn’t adapt well to heat variations; his house must remain cool. His scorched eyes are light-sensitive, so he needs dimmers and lights that activate as he moves from room to room.
Each house costs about $500,000, according to Tunnel to Towers. Siller, for whom the nonprofit organization is named, was a 34-year-old father of five who raced to join his fellow firefighters at the World Trade Center on 9/11.
Siller had finished his shift at his Brooklyn firehouse and was driving home when the attacks occurred. He raced back to the squad building, grabbed his gear and headed toward Manhattan, where smoke billowed from the twin towers. He got as far as the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel, which police had sealed to traffic. He strapped on 60 pounds of gear and ran through the tunnel to join his buddies. His remains have never been found.
“He was 34 years old, on top of the world, and he was faced with a decision,” said Frank Siller, one of Stephen Siller’s three older brothers. “He could have gone home, but he didn’t.”
The foundation, formed in 2001, held a commemorative run a year after the attacks and this year has hosted about 70 races, as well as 30 motorcycle processions. Money from those events goes to its Building for America’s Bravest program to build “smart homes.”
“We never knew we’d get in the business of building homes, but we find this very important,” said Chris Kuban, the foundation’s director of media relations.
A new home will give Love a chance to do something he misses.
“I want to cook again,” said Love, who has a building site ready in Hiram, in Paulding County. “I’m really excited about that.”
Love considers himself lucky. After his October 2010 injury from an improvised explosive device, “I was just happy to be coming home,” said Love, who enlisted in the Marines after he graduated from Kell High School in 2008.
Since returning to the states, Love has not let a wheelchair slow him down. He’s skied, participated in a Towers to Tunnel race and fought an alligator.
Yes, an alligator, and not a puny one. “It’s something I’ve always wanted to do,” he said.
Schlitz, a native of Milan, Ill., intended to make the Army a career until February 2007, when an IED exploded under the vehicle in which he was riding in Baghdad. It killed three others and left Schlitz so badly injured that he’s undergone 80 operations. He wants to build a house in Columbus.
“I’d like to break ground by December,” he said. “I’d really love to be in it by summer.
“It depends on the concert.”
Tickets range from $39.50 to $59.50, with VIP seats going for $150. They are available at www.ticketmaster.com or call 800-745-3000.
For more information on the foundation, go to www.tunneltotowers.org. The Lt. Dan Band website is www.ltdanband.com. For more information on Sinise's fundraising, to to www.garysinisefoundation.org.
To see Love grab a gator, go to
