James "Jim" Kilby is the founding Pastor of Harvest Christian Fellowship in Dayton, Ohio. He is also the Founder and President of Harvest Youth Ministries, a large non-denominational youth outreach organization with two huge teen hangouts, The Cellar in Moraine, Ohio and The Attic in Kettering, Ohio. He is 45 years old, happily married with eight children and one grandchild. Jim is also a retired Air Force officer. During his Air Force career, Jim worked as a program manager on some of the coolest and most classified systems in the world; such as the F-15, F-16, F-117, and even the awesome F-22 Raptor!

Jim is definitely not your typical pastor. Not raised in the church, he rarely entered one as a young man. His father abandoned his mother and his little sister before his second birthday. He was raised by his very young mother and a line of several stepfathers. Along the way, his mother had two more children, making Jim the eldest of four.

For much of his life, Jim lived in virtual poverty. His family frequently found themselves on State or Federal assistance. His mother's career as a country and western singer kept her away from the house much of the time. The family often moved from state to state--and the kids moved from school to school. Their home was a difficult environment for all the children. As the eldest child, Jim was routinely left to care for his younger brothers and sisters. Although incredibly difficult, this task instilled in him a deep-rooted sense of responsibility. It's also where he began to learn the leadership skills that would later make him successful in the military.

With a lack of supervision and no spiritual foundation, drugs and alcohol helped Jim get himself into trouble with school officials and with the police as he neared the age of 13. At 15, Jim fathered his first son... and because of the transient nature of the next 23 years of his life, a son he didn't know existed until Jim was 38!

Just before his 16th birthday, Jim's mother sent him to live with a step-father in Oklahoma. With "male-supervision," Jim cleaned-up his act some, but after returning to live with his mother a year later, he again found himself in trouble with the police. After an argument with his mother, he moved out on his own at 17. He subsequently dropped-out of high-school and took a job as a construction laborer.

Constantly drinking, using drugs, and running with a very rough crowd, at 17, Jim began to wonder how he had slipped so far. The realization that his life was on the wrong track often brought back thoughts of a profession of faith he had made during vacation bible school at the age of twelve. While attending the week long school, Jim accepted the fact that he was a sinner and prayed to receive Jesus' as his Lord and Savior. Still, without any real Christian upbringing, he was at a loss for what to do. Looking back, he believes the Holy Spirit led him to act upon a dream planted in his heart by his mother many years before. In a moment of amazing foresight, she told Jim she believed he would one day be an officer in the United States Air Force. Knowing he had to make a dramatic change, one day Jim quietly walked into the office of an Air Force recruiter. With the military's help, Jim received at GED and after requesting and receiving several enlistment waivers due to his run-ins with the law, entered the Air Force in early 1980.

Although a hard worker, Jim's off duty antics had him facing courts martial proceedings no less than four times during his first tour of duty. Finally, the military's rules and regulations helped Jim get his career on track, but his private life was quickly on the wrong path again. Inside he was still a very angry young man. After marrying a young lady he got pregnant, Jim's antics off-duty finally calmed down substantially. Still, his marriage was built on a very weak foundation. Soon after the birth of their second child, the marriage was in serious trouble. Caught in severe depression, Jim's first wife made a serious attempt to take her own life. It was during the aftermath of this suicide attempt and the subsequent divorce that Jim finally sought the peace and love of Jesus Christ.

After finding a church and with mentoring from several Christian men, God put Jim's life back on-track. Still, he had left three children, a wife, and many others in his path of destruction. With his heavenly Father as the model, Jim works hard to be an active father to all of his children.

In 1992, Jim met and married the love of his life, the former Jill Brensinger of Waldorf, Maryland and began work finishing his undergraduate degree at night school. While stationed at the Pentagon, Jim completed his bachelor's degree; finishing with a perfect 4.0 GPA. Later, he applied for an appointment to Air Force Officer Training School, and was selected. On June 22, 1994 he turned-in his hard-fought Master Sergeant stripes for the gold bars of a second lieutenant. With the help of the Lord, Jim had finally achieved the dream his mother had planted in him so many years before. He was an Air Force officer! Funny though, it wouldn't be long before God would ask Jim to give up his military career, in favor of reaching out to youth for Christ. Following that call, Jim founded Harvest Youth Ministries in 1998. In February of 2000, Captain Jim Kilby resigned his Air Force commission and retired to pursue ministry on a full-time basis. Under his leadership, that organization is still growing and reaches tens of thousands of youth each year. In October 2006, Jim founded Harvest Christian Fellowship in Xenia, Ohio. On April 1st of 2007, the church grew into its current 20,000 square foot facility in Kettering, which previously was a notorious nightclub and doubles as the Attic Teen Center.

Jim is quick to point out that his Lord and Savior deserves all the credit for his transformation from high school drop-out to college graduate and beyond. His current goals include continuing to grow closer to Christ as he works hard to balance his public ministry with being a spiritual leader, mentor and friend to his wife and his children. The Kilby family currently resides in Beavercreek, Ohio.