Jim Downing

Jim Downing is a twenty-four-year U.S. Navy veteran. He fought fires on and survived the sinking of the USS West Virginia during Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. He captained the USS Patapsco during the Cold War, performed a host of missions on several ships around the world, and twice served stints as a navy instructor. While racing away from Bikini Atoll on March 1, 1954, Jim and his crew were showered with radioactive ash from Castle Bravo, the most powerful nuclear bomb ever detonated by the United States and the largest U.S. nuclear contamination accident.

But Jim Downing is more than a military man—he is also a man of deep faith. On April 8, 1935, in a West Virginia turret, he dedicated his life to God. He joined the ministry of Dawson Trotman, becoming "Navigator Number Six" and helping to spread the tenets of Christianity throughout the Pacific Fleet. He served full-time with The Navigators for twenty-seven years, including as deputy president and board chair, and continues to represent the ministry at events around the world. He is the author of the books Meditation and Living Legacy: Reflections on Dawson Trotman and Lorne Sanny.

Raised in Plevna, Missouri, Jim was married to Morena Holmes for sixty-eight years before her death in 2010. He is the father of seven children and lives in Colorado Springs, Colorado.