Gary Sinise Foundation Launches National Network to Combat Post-Traumatic Stress and Traumatic Brain Injury
March 12, 2021
Actor and humanitarian Gary Sinise and his Foundation announce the launch of a cognitive health and mental wellness network providing transformative care to veterans and first responders experiencing post-traumatic stress, traumatic brain injuries, and substance abuse: the Gary Sinise Foundation Avalon Network.
The Gary Sinise Foundation Avalon Network builds on the work of the Marcus Institute for Brain Health and the Boulder Crest Foundation’s Warrior PATHH program, and will establish 20 treatment sites nationwide to serve thousands of veterans, first responders, and their families.
“When I formed the Gary Sinise Foundation in 2011, it was rooted in a personal mission to provide support, raise spirits and improve the mental wellness of our nation’s heroes and their families,” said Gary Sinise, the Foundation’s Founder and Chairman. “Always wanti
During his service in the British Army, Capt. Brian Calder pulled numerous tours of duty as an explosive ordnance demolition specialist in Northern Ireland and the Middle East.
For years, Scottish-born Calder kept the tragedies he witnessed during those deployments close to his chest, steadily managing his innermost emotions.
âI was always able to control myself,â said Calder.
But in October 2018, Calderâs son, who just two weeks earlier had received his masterâs degree in criminal forensic psychology, died in a tragic accident.
âIt broke me, completely. It 100 percent broke me,â said Calder. âI was a broken man.â
Calder, a 23-year veteran, tried to put on a brave face for family and friends, but the loss of his son was too much for him to bear.