James Soft
James C. ”Jim” Soft, 78, of Billings died Oct. 29, 2024.
He was born July 24, 1946, in Williston, N.D., to Bernard and Clara (Graber) Soft. He was the youngest of three brothers and grew up in Richey.
He was incredibly athletic and excelled in basketball, football and track and field in high school. In January 2005, he was inducted into the 10th annual Montana High School Association Athletic Hall of Fame. He was a rebounding machine, averaging 20 rebounds per game during high school. His basketball talent earned him one of the first full-ride basketball scholarships offered at Eastern Montana College. His collegiate career was a prestigious one, an All-American twice (1966 and 1967) and All-Frontier Conference three times and was named MVP of the league in 1968. While at EMC, he set season and career rebounding records and currently is the Yellowjackets’ third all-time leading scorer. In 1994, he was inducted into the Eastern Montana College Athletic Hall of Fame and Distinction and his #50 jersey was retired.
He earned a bachelor’s degree in 1968 from EMC. He holds a certified financial planner designation and a master of science degree. He also has a master of arts from Dallas Theological Seminary. He is a four-time published author. After college, he went to play for Athletes in Action, a division of Campus Crusade for Christ.
On Aug. 23, 1968, he married Linda Jo Schneider at the Evangelical United Brethren Church in Billings. They resided in Billings with their two children, Max and Brook.
His life work was dedicated to the Yellowstone Boys and Girls Ranch. He began
