On June 6 Prison Fellowship® announced the appointment of James Liske as the ministry’s new CEO. Liske, who currently serves as senior pastor at Ridge Point Community Church in Holland, Michigan, will begin his term with Prison Fellowship in late July. He succeeds Tom Pratt, who has served as interim president since October 2010.
Jim comes to PF after serving for nine years as the senior pastor at Ridge Point Community Church in western Michigan. Under his leadership, Ridge Point began a para-church organization that helps newly released prisoners deal with addiction recovery challenges, find employment, and transition back into the community.
Growing up on a family farm in Michigan, Jim gained a strong work ethic and a firm foundation in the Christian faith. He sensed a call to full-time ministry as a young man and earned a master’s of divinity from North American Baptist University in 1986. Since then, he has led churches and organizations in the United States and Canada.
He looks forward to the opportunities presented by his new position with PF.
“I’m honored and blessed to be given this amazing opportunity to serve God,” he says. “I’m energized by the rich history of Prison Fellowship and the organization’s role to reach the ‘least of these.’”
PF founder Chuck Colson likewise expressed enthusiasm about the announcement. “We clearly see God’s sovereign hand in bringing Jim to Prison Fellowship,” he says. “He has a pastor’s heart, an entrepreneur’s spirit, and a genuine passion for this work, which makes him extraordinarily well-equipped to lead this ministry into the future.”
Jim and Cathy, his wife of 28 years, will relocate to Virginia, where Jim will assume his new responsibilities in late July. He will succeed Tom Pratt, who has served faithfully as the interim CEO since October 2010.