By LISA THOMPSON
As a sixth grader, Jesse Stuckey had his own business selling homemade cinnamon rolls and bread to neighbors.
Now, as a senior at BYU, Stuckey runs his own online business selling homemade Hebrew scrolls to people all over the world.
Stuckey, who is from Houston, Texas, is double majoring in economics and political science with a minor in Hebrew. He said he has always been interested in Biblical Hebrew, and began taking Hebrew classes as a freshman at BYU.
'When you're reading in Hebrew, you can understand things that are not clear from the English translation . There are lot of ambiguities in Hebrew where things could be read a couple of ways,' Stuckey said. 'I think that's intentional and that with that the prophets can write rich meanings.'
Donald Parry, an associate professor in the Department of Asian and Near Eastern Languages, said Stuckey's thirst for knowledge has benefited him in his study of Biblical Hebrew.
'Jesse loves to learn the original language of the Old Testament, which is Biblical Hebrew,' Parry said. 'You could tell that he wanted to go beyond the original translation. He has a tremendous desire to learn.'
Every semester, Parry prepares scrolls, similar to the Great Isaiah Scroll discovered in 1947, for his Biblical Hebrew students. Stuckey said he decided to make scrolls to give to his family and friends as gifts.
After receiving compliments on the scrolls, Stuckey started his own website, www.hebrewscrolls.com. The scrolls he creates consist of verses of the Old Testament translated into Biblical Hebrew, printed on deer hide and placed inside of muslin bags made by his younger sister, Emma.
Stuckey said his interest in Hebrew grew, in part, from his intense study of the scriptures. He said he loves the scriptures, and he follows a method of marking them that involves a key and about 25 themes he tracks by marking in the margins.
In addition to his study of the scriptures, Stuckey said he has between 3,000 and 4,000 scriptures memorized. He has been a Gospel Doctrine teacher in every ward he has been in since he turned 18, and said there is nothing he would rather do.
'It turns out that it makes people highly uncomfortable when you just sort of rattle off scripture after scripture after scripture,' Stuckey said. 'I find that in classes, because it does tend to make people uncomfortable if you quote too much, I will have people read verses that I have memorized. The goal of the lesson is for them to learn and that's why we do all of it.'
Leah Elison, a senior from Kirkland, Wash., majoring in public relations, has been friends with Stuckey since their freshman year at BYU. She said she thinks Stuckey's love of the gospel has benefited many different aspects of his life.
'Jesse uses his resources better than anyone I know,' Elison said. 'He's always taken all of the opportunities that have been given him. He knows how to really use the gospel in his life and he's magnified his talents and used his resources well.'
Stuckey served in the South Dakota, Rapid City Mission, and was forced to return home after he became ill seven months into his mission. His illness has baffled doctors, and he said in the last 20 months he has seen 22 doctors, spent 20 days in the hospital, tried 60 different medications, and had seven CT scans.
'I have become something of a science fair project for doctors, where they have tried experimental tests and experimental medications,' Stuckey said.
Through this and other hardships in his life, Stuckey said his parents have been the strength that has carried him through.
'I think my parents were always good at motivating us because we always had the feeling of, 'We'll love you no matter what,'' Stuckey said. 'But they were still sort of those people in your corner trying to get you to go on.'
Stuckey's mom, Carla, a seminary teacher and mother of four, said he has inspired her through his determination to live life to its fullest despite his trials.
'He never complains,' Carla Stuckey said. 'I'll tell you, he's just a trooper. He's made it a goal to always have a great day, even when he's feeling bad. He realizes that there are hard things we need to learn and go through, but he is cheerful through all of it.'
Carla Stuckey said she thinks her son's optimism is a result of his devotion to the gospel.
'Jesse is an optimist,' Carla Stuckey said. 'He is optimistic because he knows that's the way the Lord wants us to be. Jesse is amazing in his devotion to reading and studying the scriptures and improving himself. He is certainly a model for me. I feel honored to have had the opportunity to be his mom.'
Despite his seemingly full schedule, Stuckey still finds time to pursue his other interests, including playing the guitar and baseball. He also loves sports cars, including his Mustang Cobra he calls his 'baby,' and he even coached a girl's intramural flag football team last fall.
Stuckey said he also loves spending time with his friends and family. Gregory Lee, a senior majoring in business, from Detroit, Mich., said Stuckey shows that he cares about his friends and their well-being.
'Jesse's a very loyal friend,' Lee said. 'He's the life of the party because he's fun and intelligent enough that it just kind of works out that way. He really looks out for his friends. He's a little ahead of most of his friends in school so he's always trying to help them out. And he's always trying to get them to take econ classes, too.'
Stuckey has already accepted an offer to work for a management consulting company after he graduates in April. He plans to get an MBA, but is not sure how long he will continue consulting because he has aspirations of earning a PhD in economics, and perhaps learning how he can mitigate the business cycle in order to eliminate recession and expansion.
'There are a lot of things that I could enjoy doing in life and the downside is that I probably won't have a chance to do them all,' Stuckey said. 'But the good thing is that there are lot of things I could do in life and be happy.'