team successes

TriWest Contributes to American Families, Iraqi Children

More than 600 marines and their families rocked along with actor Gary Sinise and his 12-member Lt. Dan Band, at a special USO performance at the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center in Twenty-nine Palms, California on March 12.

Sponsored by TriWest Healthcare Alliance, the event gave military families the chance to forget the challenges of military service, dance and sing along to music that spanned the genres, from Jimi Hendrix to Evanescence. Excited children huddled around the stage, vying for Sinise's attention throughout the two-hour performance.

Kathy Stone, wife of Commanding Brigadier General Douglas Stone, felt it was important for these families to get the chance to kick off their shoes for an evening. "This is the third round of deployment for many of the soldiers - that takes a lot of courage and strength," she explained. "Events like this are fun, and they need fun."

In addition to sponsoring the event, TriWest also contributed $5,000 to Operation Iraqi Children, a non-profit organization co-founded by Sinise and author Laura Hillenbrand (Seabiscuit: An American Legend), with the mission to help educate Iraqi children.

"The audience really appreciated this generous donation from TriWest," said TriWest Service Area Director David Saeva. "It demonstrates the connection between the American military and Iraqi families."

John Shore, TriWest's Market Vice President of the Southwest area stressed that the benefits of this event will be far-reaching. He said, "When the Lt. Dan Band goes to Iraq and tells those soldiers that they were just here, in Twenty-nine Palms, it gives the soldiers a piece of home, helping them connect to their families."

An avid supporter of the military and USO, Sinise named the band after his character in his Oscar- nominated performance in Forrest Gump. Sinise has traveled to Baghdad, Diego Garcia, Singapore, Korea, Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, Germany, the Netherlands, England, Italy and throughout the United States.

Sinise's film credits include Mission to Mars, Reindeer Games, Apollo 13 and Of Mice and Men. He can currently be seen on the CBS drama CSI: New York.

Future USO performances featuring the Lt. Dan Band include Grand Forks AFB and Whiteman AFB.