Jackson is the son of the late Capt. Charles H. Jackson (USMC-Retired) and the late Avon E. (Henderson) Jackson. A graduate of Jacksonville High School, Brian enlisted in the United States Navy, serving as an Electronics Technician 3rd Class during the Persian Gulf War. Upon being honorably discharged in June 1993, he resumed his undergraduate studies attending North Carolina A&T State University,
earning a BS in Business Administration from the University of North Carolina, Wilmington. Brian moved to Washington, D.C. where he continued to serve his country, spending more than ten years working for the Veterans of Foreign Wars as the Associate Director, Liaison to the National Guard Bureau. His passion for assisting our nation’s heroes, continued when he moved back to Jacksonville as a pre-discharge representative at Camp Lejeune. A multi-talented artist Brian, performing as bhenrY, has collaborated with the Washington, DC ensemble group The Ozzidi Project. He is a member of the Carolina African American Writers’ Collective. His writings have appeared in the North Carolina A & T State University journals All That Jazz and Perceptions, Fertile Ground: Memories & Visions 1996, Obsidian: Literature In The African Diaspora (Volume 10, Issue 2 Fall/Winter 2009 and Volume 11, Issue 1 Spring/Summer) and most recently, All The Songs We Sing: Celebrating the 25th Anniversary of the Carolina African American Writers’ Collective. He wrote for and was featured on the CD Unconditionally Yours. He is also the author of the chapbook More Than Words Creations: A bhenrY Sampler. Brian continues to actively serve the Jacksonville community as a member of the City Council representing Ward 1. Additionally, he serves on the Dix Crisis Intervention Center Onslow Carteret Craven Oversight Committee, National League of Cities National Black Caucus of Local Elected Officials - Board Member, National League of Cities Racial Equity & Leadership Council, North Carolina League of Municipalities Board of Directors and Onslow County Public Library Board of Trustees. He is also an active member of the Georgetown Alumni Association and a lifetime member of the Onslow County Branch of the NAACP, the Montford Point Marine Association, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, and the Disabled American Veterans.
