Jim started life on his grandparents' dairy farm in Smithsburg, Maryland, before his parents settled in the beautiful mountains of Cumberland, Maryland.  He left Cumberland after high school to pursue a Bachelor of Arts in Biblical Studies from Lincoln Christian University—East Coast.  From there he moved to the Uptown neighborhood of Chicago where he earned an interdisciplinary Master of Arts that covered urban studies, leadership, and theology from Lincoln Christian University's Chicago satellite office.  In 2000, he moved to the Hazelwood neighborhood of Pittsburgh.  With his church, he started a non-profit, special event coffee house that provided job training and skill development to neighborhood teens.  He wrote winning grants from Operation Weed and Seed, The Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation, Compassion Allegheny, and Hunter Memorial Trust.  After moving to Hampton Roads in 2010 to be closer to family, he became a Neighborhood Development Specialist with the City of Norfolk and now serves as Programs Manager with Norfolk's Department of Neighborhood Services.