Marine and Army Veteran James “Jim” Hill grew up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where he was inspired by the service of his father and grandfathers. In May 1967, he joined the Marine Corps, and completed two tours in Vietnam with the 1st Force Reconnaissance Company.
After returning home, Hill attended the University of Pittsburgh and later earned a Master’s Degree in Counselor Education from Penn State University. He re-enlisted into the Army Reserve in 1978, eventually reaching the rank of command sergeant major, deploying twice in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom with the 458th Combat Engineer Battalion and the 55th Sustainment Brigade. In total, Hill served a combined 38 years.
Today, Hill is a licensed professional counselor, supporting those who are battling substance abuse and mental health issues. He has also served as a liaison counselor to VA’s PTSD and Domiciliary program. He also assists Canyon Heroes, a nonprofit organization that sponsors wounded and disabled Veterans on week-long healing rafting trips through the Grand Canyon. He has also performed over one thousand funeral services for fellow Veterans in the “Final Honors” program, and is a member of Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1810 in Brentwood, Pennsylvania.
At home, Hill cherishes time spent with his wife of over 50 years, and their children and grandchildren.
We honor his service.
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Editors: Loretta Knieff, Ashley Shaut, Marisa Bunton
Researchers: Loretta Knieff, Raphael Romea
Graphic Designer: Saul Leon
A portion of this story was generated by AI. None of the data we reported included personal or sensitive information, and it was fact-checked and edited by a human copy editor prior to publishing.
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i salute my fellow nam vet!