From Bible College to Black Hawks: Justin Hunt’s Service in the National Guard After Studying Scripture At FLBC

Justin Hunt, Class of 2014 

RAPID CITY, S.D. — Long before Justin Hunt was a U.S. Army National Guard Black Hawk mechanic, he was a confused, high school graduate, trying to decide what to do next. Today, Hunt credits Free Lutheran Bible College for changing the trajectory of his life.  

“(FLBC) prepared me as a husband and father, but … also as a member of the military,” Hunt said. 

Hunt graduated from FLBC in 2014. He is now a specialist in the 189th Aviation Regiment of the South Dakota Army National Guard. He married his wife, Erica, in 2019, and they live in Rapid City, have two young daughters, and are members of a local Association of Free Lutheran Congregations (AFLC) church. Outside his role in the military, Hunt works for the Central States Fairgrounds and is a certified flight instructor, although he has taken a few years away from training in the skies.   

A dozen years after graduation, what Hunt learned at FLBC is still fresh. 

“(FLBC) was a chance for me to make my faith more my own,” Hunt said. “My parents instilled Christianity in me, I need to go to church, do these things, be a good Christian, but … I never learned why it was important to do that kind of stuff. And that’s really what the Bible School did for me.” 

FLBC also transformed the home he created, Hunt said. 

“I genuinely believe that had I not attended the Bible school, I don’t think I would have been the person I was when (I met) my wife.”

Because of his preparation at FLBC, Hunt believes in getting his family to church every Sunday, something he said he would have viewed as optional before. He said he also places more emphasis on raising his children in the faith and has a confidence in the validity of the doctrine of infant baptism. 

“I really am thankful for the teachings that the AFLC teaches,” Hunt said. “It’s been ingrained in me, and I am … raising my girls up in that.” 

Hunt’s journey to FLBC began in 2010. After graduating from a non-denominational Christian high school, he was unsure of what to do next, so he decided to go to college like everyone else. He spent three semesters at a secular college working on his generals before giving up. 

“I didn’t have a lot of the spiritual fellowship (there) that I had experienced during high school,” Hunt said. “(I) ended up in a place where I was kind of lack(ing) direction, and that was reflected in my grades and just my attitude towards school.” 

After returning home to work on his family’s ranch, Hunt decided on a whim to attend Campus Days at FLBC. Alongside his pastor, Wayne Olson, and another young woman interested in attending, Hunt experienced campus for the first time. 

“Pretty quickly, (I) made up my mind: ‘I want to go here, I want to attend this place,’” Hunt said. 

At FLBC, Hunt encountered a deeper level of study than he had experienced previously — even at his Christian high school. 

“It was like, we’re digging into this,” Hunt said. “We’re getting to learn why we believe what we believe.” 

Not only did FLBC strengthen his faith, but Hunt also remarked how the friendships he made continue to this day. Many of his friends have celebrated big moments together and stood up for each other at weddings. 

The opportunities at FLBC outside of traditional classroom learning also made an impact on Hunt.  He said some of his treasured memories include being part of the music program at FLBC, with choir tour being an especial favorite. 

One of Hunt’s favorite recollections from FLBC came from his second day on campus. He remembers jumping into a car with a classmate, Paul Nelson, who he had met the day before. On the way to church, they got lost in St. Paul. It’s a memory they have looked back on fondly ever since. 

In the years following graduation, Hunt attended flight school, then enlisted in the National Guard in 2022 to help pay off flight school student loans. As a non-traditional enlistee who was over 30 when he joined, Hunt is a self-described “out of the box kind of guy.” Currently serving as a mechanic, Hunt is waiting for a crew chief slot to open. In that position, he will fly on Black Hawk missions to ensure the helicopter is mechanically functioning properly. 

“I’m really big on the sense of service and duty to our country,” Hunt said. “I firmly do believe in that.” 

Beyond service, Hunt said he also sees the military as a place where he is prepared to share the gospel. 

“If I can be a friend to these people and an example, I hope that this will lead to those conversations of salvation and learning about Jesus,” Hunt said. 

Sharing the gospel is something Hunt recognizes he and his classmates were all equipped to do at FLBC. He said this equipping was not only for those who went on to be pastors and ministry workers, but equally so for those fellow alumni who Hunt has seen filling every type of vocation.  

“We all have that one thing in common that we have this foundation, this two years of training,” Hunt said. “I believe that you don’t have to be a pastor or missionary to share the gospel.” 

With the preparation Hunt received at FLBC, he is ready for whatever life sends next, whether in the military or his home, as he shepherds his family and shares the faith he has made his own.