Gary Sinise moves foundation and family to Tennessee

The move was motivated by Tennessee's lack of income tax and proximity to Nashville.

The Gary Sinise Foundation has announced that it will move from Los Angeles, California, to Franklin, Tennessee. Sinise has stated that he intends to follow the foundation, bringing himself and his family to live in the Volunteer State.

The Gary Sinise Foundation was launched in 2011 with the mission of honoring and supporting members of the armed forces, past and present. The services of this non-profit include organizing programs to support wounded veterans as well as building them new houses. Sinise further uses his Lt. Dan Band (named for the character Sinise played in Forrest Gump) to entertain the troops and raise funds.

The announcement noted that Tennessee offers a more central location in the country that will help facilitate the foundation’s charitable endeavors. Sinise commented:

“I’ve been in California for 35 years and was thinking of next steps that might be exciting for the family. We have little grandchildren,” Sinise said. “I had a lot of friends there (in Tennessee). It’s a great entertainment industry there. They’re very, very supportive of veterans and would be a good place for the foundation and the family.”

Veterans

According to census data, there are some 430,000 veterans located in Tennessee. The proximity to such a large population of those whom the foundation seeks to help is expected to streamline much of the foundation’s work. They note that Tennessee is also surrounded by seven states, each with active military bases that the foundation can attend to.

In an interview with Fox, Sinise noted that Tennessee’s lack of an income tax was a motivation for the move. With less money going out, it is likely that there will be more for the foundation’s charitable endeavors. With the presence of Nashville, considered the musical capitol of the U.S., the Lt. Dan Band will have more opportunity for exposure and to expand the reach of their message.

Sinise told Fox:

“I looked at all those no-tax states. … But I have many, many friends in the country music business and filmmaker friends in Nashville. There is all kinds of production going on in the Nashville area. It is a great no-tax state as you mentioned. It will be good for the foundation,” he said, adding Tennessee is more “centrally located” near military bases.

The actor went on to explain that many in the foundation’s leadership have decided to follow the move as well. This means that they will continue there work with very little change to their operations.