15 July - Gary Sinise Concert and Preparing to Leave Ft Lewis

15 July
This morning we started the processing of preparing to bug out of Ft Lewis Recreation Area.  It has been a great stay here and we would definitely stay here again if in this area.  Doreen did some laundry and I prepped our driving plan for tomorrow,  We did a few other things around the Rv and then drove into Ft Lewis to hit the commissary one last time.  We also found the Class Six  (liquor store) and the Military Clothing Sales store, which of course is mostly Army.

This afternoon we relaxed a bit before heading back into Ft Lewis at 1600 hrs to get our spot at the Gary Sinise and the Lt Dan Band concert.  You probably recognize that name, but Gary Sinise played the role of Lt Dan in the movie Forest Gump.  https://www.garysinisefoundation.org/ that supports Veterans.

He played a physically disabled Vietnam-era Army Veteran.  Since then Gary Sinise has embraced our military and has been a huge supporter.  He has established a Gary Sinise Foundation and has joined forces with the USO and performs around the world at military bases and deployed locations.  We are fortunate to have been camping near Ft Lewis and he performed here today.

We arrived about 1630 hrs for an 1800 hrs concert.  We parked at the commissary, a few blocks away and walked to Memorial Field where the concert was being held.  There were probably 100 people in line before us.

They opened the gates at 1700 hrs and we made our way to a point basically center stage.  We were encouraged to bring lawn chairs which we did and also refreshments.

The concert started promptly at 1800 hrs and they played for two hours straight.  They play music covering several genres including patriotic songs.  There was a 5K benefit run before the concert called "Run Forrest, Run" and the participants were invited to the area right in front of the stage.  There was a lot of crowd interaction, inviting the kids up front and onto the stage at one point.  Gary plays the bass guitar and does a great job.

The clear area in front of the stage was reserved for those who ran the 5K

The young lady next to Doreen had brought her parrot with her to the concert.  Doreen, not a bird person, was freaking out a bit.  The bird was getting upset with all the kids around and so the lady finally moved on.

Kids playing with the bird.

Performers on stage.

Gary Sinise in the blue shirt moving down the stairs to interact with the crowd.

We thoroughly enjoyed the concert, but did not stick around long after it was over.  We headed down to the next interchange on I-5 and fueled the RAM in preparation for our departure tomorrow.   We plan to leave about 0700 hrs tomorrow to try to get a jump on the totally crazy traffic around here.  Google says it is about 300 miles.  We will see how long that takes.  next report, Clear Lake Recreation Area near Spokane WA!!