32 | NOVEMBER 30 • 2023 from numerous officers, from myself and from God to give everything I had to my job. I wanted to ensure the safety of my fellow soldiers. For the first time in my life, I didn’t look to the future to get me through the day.” Rachel then shared a birth- day with the congregation that she will never forget. “January 2023 rolled around, Jan. 8 arrives, my birthday. I turned 20 in Syria. The moment I woke up that day all I desired was a hug from my father.” And that was before she reported for duty and the menacing news that awaited her. She received a report that not many people could see due to a lack of security clearances. “I read it with no one around me,” Rachel said. “Tears came streaming down my face as the implications of this threat were deadly. I prayed to God the moment I finished reading that report. This day is the day I under- stood the gravity of my job and how being an intel ana- lyst often entailed knowing something life-threatening could occur but not being able to share such details. This is when I also started praying every night for the safety of my fellow soldiers.” Later in her deployment, Rachel was transferred to another base where she faced her greatest test yet, both to her job performance and her safety. “My second base was attacked on four occasions by violent extremist organi- zations,” she said. One such attack came after only four hours of sleep after a 20-hour workday, while Rachel was the singular source of intel on the base. “Our first sergeant always yelled at anyone whose uni- form was out of regulations, but on that day I ran down to the command center in paja- mas and my combat boots. All that was running through my mind were the scenes I witnessed of the rocket attack from 2014 in Israel.” She admitted that it was a far cry from what Israelis face every day, but it was neverthe- less a new and chilling first- hand perspective. The mounting violence and the ceaseless duress that went hand-in-hand with Rachel’s 24/7 intel responsibilities were taking an obvious toll on her psyche. She was particular- ly shaken when word came down that a U.S. contractor had been killed by a kamikaze drone. But she weathered all of those emotional storms with an even greater resolve to complete her mission. There were moments during her deployment that brought Rachel some semblance of peace. “I took up the responsi- bility, alongside one of the ser- geants, to change the U.S. flag on base every week,” she said. “This was one of the most grounding experiences during my deployment. While low- ering the flag every week, my eyes often stung. I was reminded of why I was work- ing so hard and how much my fellow soldiers have sacrificed. This always gave me the moti- vation I needed to continue giving my all.” Rachel followed the tradi- tion of soldiers buying their own flags that are flown over the base and given as keep- sakes from their deployment. BOLSTERED BY FAITH “Throughout my time In Syria I was lucky to be in contact with numerous Jews in the service who tried to find reli- gious accommodations for me. I was provided an oppor- tunity to celebrate Passover with other Jews in Iraq, but I forego this opportunity as I knew that no one would fill my place at the base, and it would place an undue burden on my team in Syria.” She would go on with Passover alone. “I eagerly awaited busting open my very large can of gefilte fish, which my family sent me through Amazon. I made my first Passover meal, adding hum- mus, salad, matzah, horserad- ish and gefilte fish. I started eating just as a threat report was sent to my desk. So, on the first night of Passover, eat- ing my Passover meal, I was looking through a camera to find threat indicators.” It’s safe to say it gave new meaning to “why is this night different from all other nights.” OUR COMMUNITY continued from page 31 SPC Rachel Baker celebrates Chanukah 2022 with a fellow Jewish soldier on her base in Syria. SPC Rachel Baker participating in pistol training alongside an infantry company.