Beyond the Frontlines: Veterans in the Humanities

Welcome to another episode of Beyond the Frontlines. In this episode we feature three veteran artists, Drew Cameron, Martin Lesinski and John Schnieder, who participated in the W[A]RN and TRANSFORMED: Uniforms as Stories of U.S. exhibit, at the State Historical Society of Missouri in Missouri. Our host Nick Lopez moderated a panel discussion with the veterans and discussed Drew’s program Combat Pa...

This podcast contains discussions of war, violence, and the realities of military service. It also includes strong language. Listener discretion is advised.   In this episode of Beyond the Frontlines: Veterans in the Humanities , we sit down with Army veteran and acclaimed author Matt Gallagher, whose work explores the moral complexities of war and the long shadows it casts long after service ends...

This podcast contains discussions of war, violence, and the realities of military service. It also includes strong language. Listener discretion is advised.   In this episode of Beyond the Frontlines: Veterans in the Humanities , we sit down with Army veteran and acclaimed author Matt Gallagher, whose work explores the moral complexities of war and the long shadows it casts long after service ends...

This bonus episode of Beyond the Frontlines: Veterans in the Humanities features Proud to Be contributors Travis Klempan, Charity Winters, Donna Fullerton, Jan LaPerle, Erick Bergvik, James Hessler, and Sarah Colby. The roundtable was moderated by Mark Sundlov, Managing Director of Soldiers Memorial Military Museum for the Missouri Historical Society.  This was a live public reading and roundtable...

Disclaimer: This podcast contains themes of war and violence, and the use of adult language. Viewer discretion advised. If you are a veteran in crisis please call the Veteran Crisis Line by dialing 988 and pressing 1. The inaugural episode of Beyond the Frontlines: Veterans in the Humanities is launched on November 11 in celebration of Veteran’s Day and coinciding with the release of the 14 th vol...

Jarrod Taylor is a combat veteran and served as an infantryman in the U.S. Army from 2000-2009. He completed four deployments, including tours to Iraq and Afghanistan. In 2013, he received a Bachelor of Arts in History with Secondary Teacher Certification from Eastern Illinois University, and now has a Master of Arts in Education and an Education Specialist Degree from University of the Cumberland...

Husband-and-wife duo, Kent and Stacey Walker, both hold MFAs in writing and team-teach Veterans Writing Workshops for Missouri Humanities. Kent was a sergeant in the 3rd Infantry Division of the Army and completed two tours in Iraq. His wife, Stacey, is a lecturer at University of Missouri-St. Louis, St. Louis Community College, and Jefferson College. In this episode, we hear about Kent’s experien...

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 Bi...

Ben White is an author and professor. As he was serving his 22-year military career in the US Army and the US Coast Guard, and then again while earning his MFA from the University of Tampa, Ben thought he was a poet. He has since discovered he is not a poet at all, but rather a witness—and what he writes is testimony. In this episode, we learn how this Kentucky boy became a “Cold War Warrior” serv...

Valerie Young is a veteran of the United States Armed Forces. She served approximately ten years, with a deployment to Iraq and Hurricane Katrina. She is a loving mother of two, an aspiring writer, and a servant leader in her community. She is passionate about her personal growth and loves to express herself through poetry. Valerie has been published in seven of the ten volumes of Proud to Be: Wri...

Randy Brown is a former citizen-soldier, poet, and secret blogger. In 2011, he embedded with his former Iowa Army National Guard unit as a civilian journalist in Afghanistan. He is the author of the award-winning poetry collection, “Welcome to FOB Haiku: War Poems from Inside the Wire.” Randy has been published in nine of the ten volumes of "Proud to Be: Writing by American Warriors." In this epis...

Charity Winters is a graduate of the United States Air Force Academy and a freelance writer. During her six years on active duty, as an Air Force Security Forces officer, she completed three tours in Iraq. Charity has been published in six of the nine volumes of "Proud to Be: Writing by American Warriors." In this episode, we learn about Charity’s different security missions in Iraq, her special m...

Bill Glose is an American journalist, poet, and fiction writer. Bill has been published in 8 of the 9 volumes Proud to Be: Writing by American Warriors. In this episode, we dive deep into Bill’s experience as a paratrooper assigned to the 82nd Airborne and his service as a combat platoon leader in the Gulf War. We discuss when and why he started writing about his combat experiences, his post-army...

Jay Harden, a Vietnam War veteran, who writes poetry, prose, and songs about love, war, and personal growth. Jay has been published in all nine volumes of Proud to Be: Writing by American Warriors and is known as the “Grandfather of Proud to Be.” In this episode, we learn about Jay’s “Metal Mama” and his wartime experience while stationed in Guam—his thoughts on war and how one struggles to find o...