Washington, D.C., native Bob Jenkins, a journalism graduate of Michigan State University, joined the Times in May 1969.

He has served as the editor of its national and state news sections, city editor for its north Pinellas editions and, for 19 years, was the Times' Travel editor. (Favorite assignments: the Grand Tetons, the pyramids outside Cairo and Jordan's carved-in-the-mountains Petra.) He will never visit Venice again without his wife, Dianne, "because it is the most romantic city in the world.''

Jenkins figures he spends too much time watching sports on TV, not enough time reading recent history. A cat person. He's in Who's Who, though he's not sure why.

Phone: (727) 893-8496

E-mail: bjenkins@sptimes.com