CAP’s President, Bill Mills, is a member of Gideons International and is active in his church, serving as a deacon. He and his wife, Christi, have two daughters and are also certified foster parents with the state of Kentucky. Bill received both his undergraduate and master degrees from Eastern Kentucky University in Richmond, Kentucky.

After college, Bill moved to the central part of the state and went to work for Hitachi Automotive Products, Inc. in Harrodsburg.  During thirteen years at Hitachi, he held various leadership positions and was most recently in charge of all manufacturing operations.  While there, he led the plant’s management in continuous improvement and overall achievement of the company’s objectives.  Under his direction, the company implemented numerous time and money-saving ideas and developed an outstanding track record for quality resulting in several customer awards from automakers.

Bill accepted the call of CAP’s Presidency in October 2003 in a move that brought him back to his eastern Kentucky roots.  A native of Pineville—an Appalachian coalfield town, Bill grew up with knowledge of the unique challenges facing the area.  Early on, he learned the importance of hard work and the value in education from his dad who was a local grocer and his mother who taught elementary school. Bill saw firsthand the benefits reaped from smart, honest business.  He also learned how to deal effectively with people, both lessons that have served him well in corporate and community leadership positions. 

In addition to his business savvy and strong people skills, Bill brings Christian leadership, extreme integrity and a sense of excitement to his position as CAP’s President.  His combination of skills and dedication to his faith not only lends to successful leadership of the nation’s 15^th largest human services charity, but also generates respect and high regard by his colleagues.

Bill is a passionate advocate for the plight of eastern Kentucky’s poverty population.  His dedication to excellence, continuous pursuit to improve CAP’s services to the poor and out-of-the box thinking commands the attention of others in the industry. By spotlighting challenges facing the region and providing quality services addressing key issues, Christian Appalachian Project leads the charge of faith-based organizations serving Appalachia. 

Among Bill’s expectations for the organization are; ongoing strategic planning, enhancing awareness resulting in increased donations and capacity, expanding the volunteer program and developing and extending needs-based programs for the future.

At his direction, in 2004 CAP built a 4,500 square foot volunteer house utilizing mostly volunteer labor and saved money by renovating the main office building instead of building new offices. CAP is also addressing the region’s drug abuse problem by developing a plan of prevention and recovery, which includes the 2005 opening of a women’s substance abuse recovery center in Mount Vernon, Kentucky.  Bill raised CAP’s Operation Relief response to natural disasters to include relief work, propelling CAP to a position of high regard among disaster responders.  When Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf region last August, CAP boldly responded, dedicating 16 weeks of staff labor, materials, shower trailers, emergency supplies, financial support and other resources to devastated towns and communities in Mississippi.

In 2006, under Bill’s leadership CAP continues to pursue excellence in the call to make a difference in the lives of people in Appalachia.