JESSE LAWRENCE PAQUIN
The world is built upon kindness. ~ Psalm 89:3 vbch sxj okug
I was raised in Massachusetts by my parents, Leo and Betty Paquin, alongside my brother and best friend, Jeremy. From an early age, the outdoors shaped me. Becoming an Eagle Scout instilled in me a love of nature, adventure, public service, and a deep reverence for God. Those values remain the backbone of my life.
After moving to Florida in 1998, I enlisted in the U. S. Navy shortly after high school, entering boot camp just five days after 9 / 11. I deployed in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, first serving on the flight deck of the USS John F. Kennedy and later qualifying as an aerial photographer and Expeditionary Combat Camera. Military service taught me resilience, teamwork, and mission-focused service.
After active duty, I earned a BA in Religious Studies and an MA in Middle East Studies, deepening my connection to Judaism, Israel, and the sacred landscape of the Middle East. Following graduate school, I made aliyah and began building my life in Israel. commitment to Torah, halacha, pastoral care, and spiritual resilience, while integrating my military experience and outdoor leadership into my rabbinate.
I am also a licensed adventure guide and certified rappelling and climbing instructor in northern Israel. Through guiding in the Galilee, I help others encounter the land as sacred space, cultivating what I call“ spiritual fitness,” integrating body, soul, community, and the Divine through lived experience.
I volunteer on Tzfat’ s Emergency Neighborhood Team( Tzachash), serve as a U. S. Army Chaplain Candidate in Germany, and as a volunteer chaplain for multiple Scouting America units. I am deeply grateful to the Friends of the West Point Jewish Chapel Scholarship Fund for supporting my rabbinical journey and look forward to serving on Active Duty as a United States Army Rabbi.
My wife Shayna and I are blessed with seven children: Teneya, Puriel, Nissim, Shalva, Yanai, Yedidya, and Galya.
My calling to serve the Jewish people crystallized during Wood Badge Scout leader training in 2019. Fellow leaders, many with military backgrounds, encouraged me to pursue chaplaincy. I realized I loved serving Soldiers, Scouts, and Jews, and that Torah could serve as the bridge connecting all three.
That realization led me to AJR and the U. S. Army Chaplain Candidate Program. My rabbinical studies have deepened my
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