Pastor's Page
Pastor Jim Hilliard was raised near the Mt. St. Helens area of Western Washington and graduated from Mt. St. Helens High School in Winlock, WA in 1978. He was working on Mt. St. Helens falling timber and commerically thinning trees in what would later be called "The Red Zone" two days before St. Helens erupted in 1980. In the days following the eruption, Jim was part of a crew that went into The Red Zone and fell timber that had been blown down and exposed to the high temperatures of the gases that came from the volcano.
Several years later, after turning away from a sinful lifestyle and turning to the Lord Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of his sins, he began to teach a Youth Sunday school class in 1985 at Toledo First Baptist Church. Jim served there until 1987 when he was led to move to Southern California to continue his education.
Pastor Jim attended California Baptist University in Riverside, CA and served as a Minister of Youth at Woodcrest Baptist Church while attending Cal Baptist. While serving at Woodcrest Baptist Church under Pastor Bob Myrick, Jim sensed the Lord's leading into full time ministry. He began preaching at churches around the Los Angeles basin and was licensed in 1987. After graduating from Cal Baptist in 1990, he was called to pastor Gualala Baptist Church in Northern California, near Hwy 1 in Mendicino County. Pastor Jim was born in Carmel, CA at Penninsula Hospital on Hwy 1.
After serving in Northern California, Pastor Jim ministered at churches in Arizona, California and Oregon. He was serving at a church in Southern California when he met his wife Kathy. They were married in 1996 and were called to First Baptist Church of Norwalk, CA. Soon afterwards Sarah their daughter was born. While serving at Norwalk, Jim attended Golden Gate Baptist Seminary in Brea, CA.
In 1999, Pastor Jim was presented with an opportunity to return to Washington State and minister 80 miles North of Spokane, WA in an area that once was called "The forgotten corner of the state", at Ione Baptist Church in Pend Oreille County. Three years later, he accepted the call to First Baptist Church of West Richland, Pastor Jim and his family moved to the Tri-Cities in 2002. Recently they have adopted / inherited a kitten named Sassy! Pastor Jim and his family enjoy the Tri-Cities and hope to remain for many years to come.
Volcanic Memories 2010
Two months prior to the eruption of Mt. St. Helens, I turned twenty years of age. Our crew was commercially thinning trees, falling timber and planting trees relatively close to the rumbling mountain. Most of us were not married. However, one member of our crew was married with children and quite concerned about working that close to the mountain because "the mountain could blow" he continually warned. The rest of us just snickered at his concerns. We weren't concerned at all; until the morning of Sunday, May 18th. I received a phone call from my sister as she informed me that "the mountain blew." Many of us wondered if Harry Truman had survived. Not much did survive after that fateful spring morning.
Following the eruption of Mt. St. Helens, we began working in the red zone. That was the area that was off limits to the public. All of us had to wear breathing masks and wear goggles that usually fogged up and obstructed our vision as we worked. When we used our chainsaws, we first had to use a wirebrush to remove the volcanic ash from the area of the tree we were going to cut. As you can imagine, we needed to use several chains for our saws daily.
On Monday, the day following the eruption, I was headed to work and was aware of how the road became increasingly hard to negotiate. I had to turn around and go to work another way due to the mud flows that had made their way down the river and impeded all traffic on the road.
What amazed me the most was that the large Douglas Fir trees that had been scorched by the volcanic gases. The gases went through a stand of timber and left a visible reminder as the tops of a tree were burned by the gases and lower half was still green and untouched.
On Sunday, May 18th, 1980 the eruption of Mt. St. Helens changed many things. For those families who lost loved ones, it changed their lives forever. The mountain left many scars on the people and terrain. Over the last 30 years, I have learned that time does indeed heal most wounds. If there ever was a "surreal" experience, the eruption of Mt. St. Helens and its aftermath was one of them!
Pastor Jim Hilliard, First Baptist Church of West Richland
