Before joining Kankakee, Jay Kim experienced various ministry settings. He ministered to teenagers, college students and young adults as a director in Los Angeles. As an ordained pastor, Jay served two different churches in other states. He enjoys reading and meditating, and also likes the outdoors like fishing and hiking whenever time is available. His philosophy of ministry is depth in simplicity. Our life journey is simple; follow Christ on Earth. He has been married to his wife Susan for 18 years and has two teenage boys; Jayden and Logan. They still reside in Los Angeles, California. 

Jay is a graduated with a bachelors at Princeton University (BA) and Vanderbilt University (MA), received his masters of divinity at Fuller Theological Seminary (M.Div), and completed his doctorate at Denver Seminary (D.Min) and Harvard University (Ph.D). He was ordained as a pastor with PCUSA in 2012.