Before joining AAC in the Summer of 2020, Rev. Brandon Hilstad served for five years as an international worker with the Alliance, first in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso and then in Paris, France. During this time, he and his wife, Melanie, focused on developing young missional leaders while investing in ministries ranging from drilling wells in rural Sub-Saharan Africa to creative outreach efforts in post-Christian Western Europe. 

Before going overseas, Brandon spent six years in pastoral ministry at an Alliance church in the San Diego area, three years as youth pastor, and then three as lead pastor. Prior to that, he served in the U.S. Navy for six years. Brandon earned a B.S. in Christian Ministry from Crown College and is currently working on an MDiv. Brandon and Melanie have been married since 2004 and have four children, Maxx, Myles, Abi, and Knox. Brandon is passionate about seeing Christ-exalting, Bible-saturated, gospel-centered, missions-sending local churches fire on all cylinders. He enjoys reading, working out, tackling home improvement projects, and language learning.