MILITARY WEEK: PART THREE
In honor of Veterans Day, all this week we are profiling different veterans from all different walks of life that have made their way to the Desert Southwest.
News 11 spoke with one woman who served in Iraq and retired nearly 4 years ago to become a home school teacher for her kids.
Cinnamon Bilenski, is a teacher, a wife, a mother of seven and veteran who served our country for over 20 years. Here is her story.
“The recruiter called me and said, would you like to go early to boot camp and I said, ‘Oh yes,’ ” said Bilenski.
This is Cinnamon Bilenski, once a small town girl from a farming community in Illinois, she never thought being in the military is where she would end up.
Deciding that she needed a life change, Cinnamon joined the Marine Corps in college and developed a new love for our country.
“I was only planning on doing four years and getting out and finishing college and going back to Illinois and probably go back to the farm country that I grew up in. Um but I enjoyed it so much and I just felt such a love for the marines…. And for the country, that I said you know, I think I’m going to do this again and I just kept re-enlisting and I just fell in love with it,” said Bilenski.
She traveled all over the U.S including several trips overseas.
“I was there for two years in Iwakuni, Japan and it was probably then that I noticed all the freedoms and benefits and privileges that we have as Americans that others do not.
While making her way back to the states, Cinnamon was stationed all over the U.S from Camp Lejeune to Camp Geiger as a Combat Instructor to camp Pendleton. She describes her duties at Camp Pendleton as a Gunnery Sergeant.
“You have a platoon of marines that you lead and you give them advise on everything. From ‘do you really think that’s a good purchase for your money’ to ‘do you think you should go into debit’,” said Bilenski.
Being in charge of a platoon, that of which she often refers to as family, was a role she was proud to have.
Growing up, being a woman in a profession dominated by men, brought some concerns to her family.
“I think the reason they worried before is because they didn’t think I would be able to make it. I didn’t feel like I was any different,” said Bilenski.
While at combat in 2003, Cinnamon was fortunate enough not to have seen the worst during her time in Iraq and Kuwait. 14 years later after having served for 20 years, she explains how being a marine is not just a job
“You’re a marine 24 hours a day, it’s not you go hang up your cammies, your charlies or your blues and you can just put it away until the next day. It’s that you need to be honorable and have that integrity all the time,” said Bilenski.
Her husband who is currently a sergeant major of MACS-1 and cinnamon home schools her five of her seven children, she says her time spent in the military really opened her eyes and showed her how fortunate she truly is.
