12/16/2025
An ATV accident probably saved Jason Hilton’s life.
While scanning for broken bones and other injuries after the wreck, doctors noticed something that didn’t seem quite right. A follow-up exam led to an official diagnosis, then chemotherapy, radiation, and a specialized surgical procedure to treat the Stage 3 testicular cancer that already had spread to his lymph nodes.
Now cancer-free, he’s keenly aware that things may have turned out differently if he hadn’t given the throttle too much gas and ended up in the ER that afternoon more than a decade ago. But then again, he’s always had his own unique way of doing things.
He grew up in Limestone, Tenn., and if you had asked back then, he would have told you he wanted to be an engineer. All that changed, however, when an elderly bookkeeper near his father’s barber shop suddenly died. He watched intently as EMTs responded.
“I saw what they were doing and thought it looked like a job I might really like,” he explained.
He left Davy Crockett High School during his senior year (an interesting story for another time), earned a GED, and immediately enrolled in the EMT program at Northeast State Community College. By the time his former classmates received their diplomas, he was already certified and working for Washington County/Johnson City EMS.
In the years that followed, he defied the odds by marrying Rebecca, who never gave him the time of day back in high school, then became a father, finished paramedic school, and worked for both Greene County EMS and Sullivan County EMS. When he applied for a part-time job with the Bristol Tennessee Fire Department, he came out on top yet again.
“I came in hoping for a part-time job and left with a full-time position,” he chuckled.
Station No. 5 near The Pinnacle was under construction and the City was focused on hiring 13 new firefighters to provide around-the-clock coverage. His EMT experience helped him land the job, but he still needed fire training.
“I was part of the City’s only in-house rookie school,” he said. “I was 32 at the time and going through the program with a bunch of 18 and 19-year-old kids. I was a little worried about whether or not I could handle it, but I did fine.”
A few months ago, he was promoted to his current rank of Administrative Captain and is now responsible for the department’s public relations efforts, risk management, the smoke detector program, the car seat safety program, fire inspections, and cause and origin investigations. A quick study, he’s taken two professional certification exams in recent weeks and plans to pursue additional certifications that will allow him to assume even more responsibilities.
When he’s not at the BTFD, Capt. Hilton can often be found volunteering for the Bloomingdale Fire Department or working with an EMS crew at Dollywood. The biggest needs on park property are Band-aids and Tylenol, he said, explaining that Sevier County EMS is dispatched when more severe issues require transport to a hospital. His other job – more of a hobby than a money-making venture – involves designing challenge coins. The coins are often collected by military units, law enforcement agencies, fire departments and other organizations, and traded amongst their members.
He's always enjoyed drawing, he said, and designed his first coin soon after he and other members of the Region 1 Strike Force Task Team were deployed to South Carolina following Hurricane Debby. He’s designed more than a hundred others since then of all shapes and sizes for agencies across the country including the Norfolk Southern Railroad Police SWAT Team, the U.S. Marshals Service’s Missing Child Unit, and police departments in Arizona, Kansas, and elsewhere. When K9 Kai of the Bristol Tennessee Police Department died earlier this year, he created a commemorative coin for Kai’s partner, Lt. Matt Cousins, and recently designed his own coin – one he refers to as “Little Hilton” – complete with a captain’s hat and mustache.
And speaking of little Hiltons, there are three at home. Fourteen-year-old Noah was just a year old when his dad was diagnosed with cancer and, although doctors said it was highly unlikely, twin brothers arrived five years later. School and sports keep them busy, but twice a year the entire family boards a cruise ship. Some of their favorite destinations include Aruba, San Juan, Curacao, St. Martin, and Grand Turk.
Shout out to Capt. Jason Hilton – an accomplished first responder and devoted family man who has mastered the game of life. He’s another great example of .
