Actor Gary Sinise shares the pain of watching his son bravely battle cancer, and shares the power of prayer and deep faith during the heartbreaking tribulation that took the life of a “great man of faith.” He also highlighted how it brought hope and support.
In August 2018, McKanna Anthony “Mac” Sinise was diagnosed with chordoma. A rare, slow-growing cancer that forms in the spine or base of the skull. Mack underwent surgery to remove his first tumor in September 2018. Unfortunately, by May 2019, the cancer had returned.
Sinis recently said: Christian Broadcasting Network,”It had started to come back and spread throughout his body. He went back to the hospital, at which point he started chemotherapy and radiation, but there is no cure for this particular cancer. There are no reliable drugs used to fight this disease that have been effective. ”
Sinise describes her conflict with cancer as “He said the tumor was “growing very rapidly”, which is not characteristic of chordoma.
Mac endured some unrelenting treatments, including debilitating medications, excruciating surgeries, and lengthy hospital visits.
To make matters worse, Gary’s wife Moira was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer in the summer of 2018. She also underwent surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy. After several months of treatment, Moira’s cancer went into remission.
Mac wasn’t so lucky. The cancer had spread throughout his body.
By November 2018, Mack had undergone a third spinal surgery to remove the tumor. At that point, Mac was severely disabled by cancer and could no longer come to the office, where he worked as an assistant manager. Gary Sinise Foundation. Cancer eventually forced him to resign from his father’s charity position.
Sinise confessed, “Did you ever fall down the stairs and almost vent your emotions? Because you didn’t know what else to do. You were trying to do the best you could.” Find a solution for Mac and his cancer. ”
During his grueling battle with cancer, Mack “loved his Catholic faith” and embraced his religion for strength.
“It was just emotional to see how it helped me get through this battle with cancer,” Sinise told CBN.
To overcome his courageous journey, Mac found solace in the power of prayer, kept a journal, and reconsidered his passion for making music.
Mac has been a drummer since he was nine years old and was also a stand-in drummer for the Sinnies’ Lt. Dan Band, a musical group that treats wounded veterans in military hospitals across the country.
However, cancer left Mac almost paralyzed from the neck down, and he lost the ability to play the drums or piano.
“In early 2023, he said to me, ‘Dad, you know, there’s some music that I didn’t finish in college, and I want to finish it,'” Sinise said. Besides, he wasn’t thinking about music at all, in fact, at the beginning of 2023, he started talking about it. ”
In his hospital bed, Mac finished the song he started writing in college.
Mack was a graduate of the University of Southern California Thornton School of Music. He reunited with his old friend from college, composer Oliver Schnee. Schnee orchestrated and produced Mac’s song titled “Arctic Circles.”
On July 17, 2023, the song “Arctic Circles” was recorded at the prestigious Sunset Sound Recording Studio in Los Angeles, California.
Sinise said: “When I went to the recording studio with him, he wouldn’t play me this song at all, so I was just crying and confused. He wrote this song when he was in college. I had never heard it before,” he recalled.
The proud father added: “I was totally unprepared for what I was about to hear. It was all a surprise, but it was all beautiful and a beautiful moment to hear it.” I did.
Mac Sinise – Arctic Circlewww.youtube.com
Moira encouraged Mac to satisfy his musical thirst by playing the harmonica, which he taught himself to play.
Mack recorded two more musical sessions of original compositions in Tennessee, where he played harmonica with members of the Lt. Dan Band, including his bassist father.
The band played a cover of “Red River Valley,” an old American folk song that his mother used to sing to him and his sisters when they were young.
The sessions were recorded at Nashville’s famous Blackbird Studios, where music stars such as Taylor Swift, Keith Urban, and Tim McGraw have recorded songs.
Mac celebrated his 33rd birthday by recording a song in the studio with a full orchestra, and famous singer Harry Connick Jr. made a special appearance.
Mac Sinise – Harry Connick Jr. makes a surprise visit to the studiowww.youtube.com
The “Forrest Gump” star revealed that Mack “made a dream come true” by recording his original music.
“He accomplished what he set out to do and lived happily ever after at the end of his life. That’s certainly a comfort to our family,” Sinise said.
Despite all his struggles and overwhelming hardships, Mac relied on his music and faith to persevere.
“I know his faith played a huge role in getting him through this fight,” Sinise explained. “And I was with him every step of the way during his hospital stay. [him] His last days before he passed away and I saw him struggle. But I knew he was happy with what he accomplished in the end. ”
Sinise described her brave son as “a man of great faith, a great, great man of faith.”
However, Mac was forced into an extremely difficult struggle. This young man embraced his faith and began to consistently read St. Augustine’s Prayer Book, where he underlined and wrote his own thoughts about the fight for his life.
“It was a special prayer book that he left for his mother,” Sinise said. “He wrote all sorts of things in it, like, ‘When I die, give it to my mother.’ [are] It’s underlined there. ”
Ms Sinise acknowledged the excruciating pain of watching her son run for his life.
“In the past 69 years, there have been sad and painful moments along the way, but I have never experienced sadness and pain like this,” Sinise lamented. “He was starting to free his mind. The fight was leaving him.”
Makanna Anthony “Mac” Sinise passed away at 3:25 p.m. on January 5, 2024, at the age of 33, after a long and tragic battle with cancer.
Ms. Sinise was serenaded with heartfelt condolences for her son’s tragic death.
Mac left his loved ones a portal into his soul that recorded his most difficult times.
“I found a lot of his writing on his iPhone and iPad, and even recorded selfies of him talking to the camera about what he was thinking and feeling,” Sinise revealed. Ta. “So I knew he was as prepared as he could be. My job was to keep trying to find medicine and keep fighting. Even in his final days in the hospital, I never wanted to give up. .”
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