"Being under these conditions I can really understand the true meaning of love, life, & liberty. I just pray to God that I may live to enjoy them after this world pulls itself out of the chaos." (Diary, page 22)

Leon Frank Jenkins

War: World War, 1939-1945 Branch: Marine Corps Unit: 3rd Defense Battalion Service Location: Pearl Harbor, Hawaii; Midway; Guadalcanal (Solomon Islands); Mare Island, California; Pacific Theater Rank: Private First Class

After enlisting in the Marine Corps in 1940, Private First Class Leon Frank Jenkins survived the attack on Pearl Harbor, and went on to fight in the battles at Midway, Guadalcanal and Tulagi. The diary he kept during the summer of 1942 includes graphic and detailed descriptions of combat experiences that would affect him for years to come. In 1943, Jenkins was discharged with a diagnosis of psychoneurosis, and according to his family, he battled Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) for the rest of his life.