Billy Jenkins

Billy Jenkins is a Pittsburgh-based writer and a 28-year veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps, where he retired as a Sergeant Major. He is a City of Pittsburgh Firefighter with over 22 years of service. In 2015, he earned his MFA in Creative Writing from Chatham University. In addition to writing, Billy is an actor and has appeared on TV, in movies, and on stage.

In this episode, we learn what drew Billy to service at the age of 17, about his 2003 deployment following 9-11, how a conversation over MREs (Meals, Ready-to-Eat) inspired him to pursue writing, and how his writings speak to the memory of his father and his own military experience. We also discuss the expectations of “the eve of” a thing, his “Barney-style” of writing, on being a “spork”, the collaboration of veterans and the arts, and the benefits from acting vs. writing.

In this segment, Billy reads the following excerpts from Proud to Be:
“Going Home” from PTB, Volume 6
“The Night Before” from PTB, Volume 10

What is Proud to Be?

Proud to Be highlights veterans, military personnel, and family members published in Proud to Be: Writing by American Warriors. Proud to Be is a creative writing anthology that preserves and shares our nation’s military experience through poetry, fiction, essay, interviews, and photography. The podcast will feature interviews with PTB contributors as we discover their military affiliation and the stories behind their PTB contributions.