Pastor Daniel Paul's Biography

Born December 3, 1967, Pastor Daniel Paul was the first grandchild on both sides of his family. His relatives called him “the gift” since he was the oldest and born in the month of December. Pastor’s six younger siblings include: Elise (lives in Ouanaminthe), David (foreman during orphanage construction), Edline (works at a university in business administration), Ricot, Esaü (graduated from seminary in Port-au-Prince in 2007), and Nahomie (half sister).

Pastor’s mother received a head injury from concrete and died two years after the accident around 1981. Following her death, Pastor, along with David and

Elise, went to live with his grandmother in Port-au-Prince. Edline, Ricot, and Esaü (six months old) were sent to an orphanage. Pastor’s father worked with glass artwork, sold jewelry, and served as a deacon in the Lutheran church. He remarried and had Nahomie. In 1982, he also died. Pastor’s stepmother went to work in the Dominican Republic around 1986-1987 and was never heard from. It is assumed that she died there. Pastor would visit his younger siblings in the orphanage two times a year.

Pastor attended a primary and secondary Lutheran school in Port-au-Prince. His teacher in secondary school, Pastor Louis, was the first Haitian to graduate from Ft. Wayne, Indiana. Pastor Daniel graduated high school from Concordia.

In 1992, Pastor left Port-au-Prince for Les Cayes on the southern peninsula. One of his teachers, Pastor Isador, was sent to Les Cayes to expand the Lutheran Church. Pastor Daniel served as principal of the Lutheran school in Les Cayes for one year and served as a deacon. As deacon, his responsibilities included opening and leading other affiliation churches throughout the countryside. At one time, his responsibilities included serving twelve churches. He would have to ride his bike for one day to get to some of the churches. From 1994-1998, they would meet on Saturdays and Pastor held classes (like seminary) to discuss the Bible readings for that Sunday and the teachings of the Lutheran Church. They also opened a missionary training center in Les Cayes. In 1995, Pastor Daniel taught at the missionary center to train others.

Pastor studied agriculture at the American University of the Caribbean for three years. He missed graduation by one year after deciding to study at Ft. Wayne, Indiana in 1998 with three other Haitians: Paul Touloute, Marky Kessa, and Eleona Bernard. Before leaving for Indiana in 1998, Pastor married Clynie. She joined Pastor for the last nine months of seminary.

Pastor Daniel was the first person on both sides of his family to graduate from secondary school, attend a university, graduate, and own a vehicle. Upon graduation from Ft. Wayne in 2001, Pastor returned to Port-au-Prince to help establish and teach at the seminary. He was assigned bishop of the Nord Est region and in 2002 began his ministry in Ouanaminthe.