Being in the U.S. military requires a certain level of toughness; however, being an LDS chaplain in the military requires more than just toughness.
Growing up in Hyattsville, Md., Gabriel Hess’s dreams were of being an actor and attending the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London. Hess even had other ideas about his future career, but none had anything to do with the military.
Hess grew up in a family with two younger brothers in the Washington, D.C., area. He had been home schooled until BYU admitted him as a freshman.