What a night! 

Even on one of the hottest days of the summer, our annual Midway American Patriot Award Gala was a huge success. As the sun’s blistering temperature faded at dusk, our 700 guests were finally able to beat the heat and enjoy celebrating with our honoree Gary Sinise and the Gary Sinise Foundation team. 

Following the gala, Gary sent us a wonderful personal note of thanks and I wanted to share some of his comments.

“It was wonderful to be there and receive this most esteemed honor. I have the utmost respect for the educational programs you provide. Our young Americans need to know America’s core values of service and sacrifice and it is programs like yours that will reach deep into their hearts, planting the seeds of patriotism, love of country and what it takes to keep us free. Thank you again so much for this beautiful medal. It was a wonderful night on the deck of that amazing ship.” 

A big thanks to Gary and his team for their incredible foundation work, and to our Midway team for working so hard to create another magical evening honoring a great American patriot.

A few weeks after the gala, we had the pleasure of helping celebrate another remarkable group of American patriots during the reunion of the Midway Veteran’s Association. It was their first gathering since 2019. I had the true honor of welcoming this brotherhood of former Midway sailors at their kick-off breakfast, and was able to share with them that their beloved ship continues to be in good shape and the future of the museum is bright. Veterans came from all over the country with family members to once again explore Midway, take in the sights and sounds of San Diego, and meet each other – some for the first time. I believe there may have also been a few sea stories swapped along the way!

As you can see, life aboard Midway is alive and well. Thank you for the many ways you continue to make that possible.

As always, let us know when your next visit is so we can say hello.