Rev. Jeannette Bessinger

Biography

Rev. Jeannette Bessinger (she/her) is an ordained interfaith minister and board-certified health coach with over 20 years of experience supporting people of all ages through challenging changes in their lives. When her son was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, she pivoted from an MDiv in pastoral ministry into an ordination program at one of the first interfaith seminaries and started her own business as a community minister offering health and spirituality coaching.

Over her eclectic career, she’s been privileged to work with hundreds of people from many different communities in everything from Head Start programs to spiritual centers, non-profits, LGBTQ+ organizations, churches, hospitals, colleges, activism groups, to the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Most recently, she’s run support groups for metastatic cancer patients, has a private practice in spiritual direction, and is the Director of Spiritual Development for a thriving Unitarian Universalist Church.

Jeannette believes in practical, spiritual “power tools for the people”. In our post-COVID time, rife with the youth mental health crisis and an over-extended healthcare system, she’s working with her communities to increase the accessibility of early intervention and prevention education and provide innovative forms of spiritual support. She believes that effective, practical, equity-based pastoral care has the potential to meet the growing needs of our communities in creative, generative ways.

A graduate of Columbia College, Columbia University (BA), Jeannette is a certified spiritual director and interfaith seminary/CPT graduate with a theological MA in social change/chaplaincy concentration from Starr King School for Ministry. She has extensive additional training in multiple pastoral care modalities – including the ACPE Spiritual Care Specialist Program (formerly Pastoral Care Specialist), Critical Incident Stress Management, trauma-focused somatic practices, embodied activism, and more.