By Lisa Miller

The Proud to Be Consortium is pleased to announce the publication of its third installment to the very successful Proud to Be anthology series: Proud to Be: Writing by American Warriors vol 3. The Missouri Humanities Council, Saint Louis Poetry Center, Southeast Missouri State University Press, and Warriors Arts Alliance will be celebrating the launch of Proud to Be vol 3 December 13, 2014 at the Focal Point starting at 1pm. This event will feature readings from the contributors many of whom are Veterans from the greater Saint Louis area. Copies of the anthology will be available for purchase and signing. Food and refreshments will be served. This event is free and open to the public.

Proud to Be: Writing by American Warriors vol 3 is a collection of poetry, prose, essays, and photography and is a unique and very personal look into the lives and experiences of our American Warriors. Writings selected for the anthology were the winners of the annual “Proud to Be” contest sponsored by the Missouri Humanities Council.

Created by the Missouri Humanities Council, the Warriors Arts Alliance, and Southeast Missouri State University Press this series of anthologies preserves and shares military service perspectives of our Soldiers and Veterans of all conflicts and of their families. It is not only an outlet for artistic expression but also a document of the unique aspects of wartime in our nation’s history.

The MHC anthology project continues to expand on previous successes. Volume 1 was awarded the Stars and Flags Book Award Gold Medal. Reprints and excerpts from writing published in previous volumes of Proud to Be have appeared in  Humanities, the National Endowment for the Humanities magazine; Open Mind, the California Humanities Council newsletter; Missouri Life magazine; Focus, the Missouri Economic Development news; the St. Louis Post-Dispatch; and has been read at the Veterans Recognition ceremony hosted by the State Historical Society of Missouri in Columbia, Missouri and by veteran Tony Mena twice at the annual New York City PSTD Treatment Center Benefits with actor Jake Gyllenhaal.

Missouri Humanities Council and Southeast Missouri State University Press released a call for submissions for the next round of the Proud to Be anthology. The deadline for submissions to Volume 4 is June 1, 2015. The guidelines are posted on the Southeast Missouri Press website (www6.semo.edu). The contests and submissions are open to any American veteran, military-service personnel, or their families.