Actor Gary Sinise warned that many Americans are disconnected from military service because they don't know "anybody who serves," leaving them removed from the sacrifices troops make on their behalf.
The "Forrest Gump" actor spoke with Fox News' Benjamin Hall, saying the lack of personal connection has created a gap between civilians and those who fight for their freedom.
"There's a lot of people in the country, believe it or not … they're not personally connected to anybody who serves," Sinise said on the "Searching for Heroes" podcast.
"They're disconnected to what happens when somebody serves our country," he added.
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Sinise said not knowing someone in the military leaves some Americans questioning why anyone would put on a uniform and go to war. But he raised the question of what would happen to our freedoms if there was "nobody that wanted to do that?"
The actor pointed to Vietnam veterans as an example, saying they never got the recognition or "support they needed" when they returned home.
"Coming up and patting them on the back and saying, 'You know what? I appreciate people like you who serve our country in uniform. I appreciate what you do.' That can change somebody's day," he added.
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The Golden Globe-winning actor has been involved with veterans since playing one himself in the 1994 film "Forrest Gump." Sinise recalled that, after playing the iconic character of Lieutenant Dan Taylor, he found veterans were more willing to open up to him.
"Lieutenant Dan walking into a hospital room could just make things a little bit easier for that family or that wounded service member," he said.
"When I saw that that was effective, I wanted to do it more and more."
He officially launched the Gary Sinise Foundation in 2011 as a nonprofit to help service members, veterans, first responders and their loved ones. He said its mission statement is intentionally broad to help as many heroes in America as possible.
Part of that mission is making sure that, unlike the Vietnam veterans, service members today get the welcome home and support they deserve.
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"Many Vietnam veteran pals that I met through my work in Chicago, supporting them over the years, I credit them with kind of motivating me and inspiring me to try to do what I can today," Sinise said.
"To ensure that the folks that have been deployed to Afghanistan, Iraq, these conflicts over the last 20, 25 years, that they are treated with respect, and they get the welcome home that our Vietnam veterans never got."
