ORLANDO, Fla. – More than 700 families are at Walt Disney World this week for the Gary Sinise Foundation’s annual Snowball Express, a healing retreat.
Snowball Express is in its 19th year, but since 2018 the Gary Sinise Foundation has been bringing families of fallen service members to Disney World in Florida for the annual program.
“That’s the heartbeat of the Gary Sinise Foundation is trying to lift these folks up — you know, they don’t ask for much and they give a lot,” said Gary Sinise, actor and founder of the Gary Sinise Foundation.
The weeklong program is full of activities, including a Walk of Gratitude at Magic Kingdom.
During the walk, families write personal messages to their loved ones on a scroll, then the children of the fallen heroes ring bells to send those messages up to the parents they lost as the scrolls are sent up to heaven during a special show at Cinderella’s Castle.
[FLASHBACK: Video below features Gary Sinise Foundation from 2019]
“You can see what it is to bring so many children together who’ve all lost a parent and the healing that happens when they meet other kids and they see they’re not alone and they’re going through the loss they suffered in service to our country,” Sinise said.
The Snowball Express program also features the Remembrance Garden located inside the Coronado Springs Resort.
The Remembrance Garden features over 700 flags, each which represents a fallen hero from one of the families. Every flag carries a name card of the fallen hero and families are able to leave personal notes, Teddy bears or other items.
“It’s very powerful when you walk through here,” Sinise said.
While Snowball Express provides a safe space for healing, it also provides joy.
“We want to just, you know, give them a lot of love, show them that they can be happy, show them that they can have joy, and that there are many, many other kids (who) are going through the same thing,” Sinise said. “When they see each other, having a good time, enjoying themselves, that lifts them up and it lives and lifts the surviving spouse up as well because they’ve gone through a lot.”
Learn more about the Gary Sinise Foundation and its other programs.
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