Photo By Kyler Hood | Rachel Silversmith, a realty specialist for Navy Facility Engineering Systems Command...... read more read more
When Rachel Silversmith was a young girl, she fell in love with the ocean and had dreams of doing something unique, bigger than herself, and beyond the bounds of her hometown, landlocked Farmington, New Mexico. In high school, the young Native American girl discovered the path to that dream when a recruiter described the Navy’s mission and planted the seed of her bright future.
A competitive runner in high school, Silversmith passed up an athletic scholarship to join the Navy through the delayed entry program, which allows soon-to-be Sailors to get time in service before attending boot camp if they fulfill certain obligations.
Silversmith was no stranger to military service. Her father was a private in in the Marine Corps and her brother served in the Air Force for 10 years. A distant relative was a Navajo Code Talker. Code Talkers were Native Americans from the Navajo Nation who helped develop a code using their native Diné language for the U.S. military to use during World War II. The code was deemed "unbreakable" and helped push the U.S. to victory in the war.
The ability to travel and earn an education with the GI Bill appealed to Silversmith, who began her naval career on May 4, 1999. She has made good on her plans for adventure and exploration, travelling to some 27 countries and living in diverse locations: Hawaii, Greece and locations on the east and west coasts of the United States.
When she retired from the Navy after 22 years as a Gunner’s Mate who served as an active-duty Sailor and Reservist, Silversmith had been living in Italy for a year and a half. It was there that she began pursuing her Bachelor of Science in business administration, which she earned in 2014. Three years later, she completed the naval acquisition development program, a developmental and leadership program that enhances the professional knowledge and capabilities of recruited personnel. This led to her current role as a realty specialist for Navy Facility Engineering Systems Command Pacific (NAVFAC PAC), where she assists with the acquisition of the correct real estate rights that match Navy and Marine Corps requirements and ensures effective management of those rights to support Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam and different missions throughout the Pacific area of responsibility. This area includes operations in the Far East, Guam, and Australia; her business line has oversight for the West Coast, the Northwest and the Southwest.
Silversmith followed in the footsteps of Native Americans who served in the Navy and the Marine Corps over the last 200 years. Today, there are approximately 11,600 Navy and the Marine Corps active-duty members, reservists, and civilians who identify as Native American. There are over 574 federally recognized tribes and over 9 million people who identify as American Indian and Alaska Native. Nearly 50% of those two demographic groups serve in the U.S. Navy.
We spoke with Silversmith about her Native American heritage, the rewarding part of her job, and what Native American Heritage Month means to her.
What is your heritage?
My heritage is Navajo. My mom is half Navajo and half white. My dad is Navajo and a little bit Mexican. I’m not sure too sure about my grandparents on my father’s side. They both passed and a lot of history wasn’t kept or pictures.
I don’t speak the language. My parents are fluent, but I think they had adverse experiences growing up which made it difficult to pass down the language. My mom learned [Navajo] when she was about 13, but because she was light skinned, it was difficult for her to [continue to] learn. My dad went to boarding to school where they couldn’t speak Navajo; they had to speak English. They never spoke it to us when we were younger. A lot of my cousins still speak it and I tried. It’s a very difficult language. I left home when I was 19. There’s not a lot of native speakers in my career path that I got to encounter throughout the last 24 years.
Growing up, we did a lot of Native American prayer meetings where everything is in Navajo, and the accompanying music has drums, rattles, and singing. They pray to the same God as in Christianity, he’s the creator. It’s done in a traditional setting, which can be a Hogan [a traditional dwelling and ceremonial structure of the Navajo people of Arizona and New Mexico] or a tepee instead of a church. Unlike what modern society thinks of as going to church, you can pray anywhere, the place isn’t as important as what is being taught, thanks given, blessing asked for.
What are some traditions that inspire you?
I enjoy a lot of the stories that are passed down orally. I think we lost a lot of that just because we didn’t write things down. The loss of the language, there’s a barrier.
As kids, we used to wake up in the morning at sunrise and pray. It’s one of the things I still do to this day.
I think you can look up the prayer – it’s Walk in Beauty [a traditional Navajo/Diné prayer]. Essentially, you ask for blessings and give thanks. You can start from your feet to the top of your head. To walk in beauty, above you, before me, below me, beside me, in front of me, and behind me. To be encapsulated in your actions, in your words, in your thoughts. That to me has been really helpful.
It’s used a lot in your day-to-day, like when people pass. When he goes onto the creator, they pray that he walks in beauty on his next adventure, the afterlife.
Highlighting the language and how it developed our history as Americans during World War II as code talkers. I believe the third to last [living] code talker passed away this week, so out of the code talkers there are two left. I think he passed at 107. My cousin’s grandfather was a code talker and it’s just extraordinary how the language is. The difficulty makes it like a code within a code. It’s something that I wish I could learn. I’ve tried. It’s really difficult with pronunciation, reading, and speaking. I think the language is something that should be preserved and taught.
Is there a Native American person who inspires you?
When I was a freshman or sophomore in high school, one of my coaches told me about an athlete who was in the Marine Corps, Billy Mills. He was the Native American who won [a gold medal in the 10,000 meter run] in the1964 Tokyo Olympics. He was Dakota.
I did a lot of running growing up in junior high and high school, a little bit in college, and just throughout my military career. I’ve done several marathons and triathlons. I don’t run anymore.
I remember my coach had me watch the video of Bill Mills winning, the first Native American to ever win in that event. He goes and he talks about his story, how he gave that much effort because he knew the time that he needed to be competitive which was about 50 seconds faster than his fastest run.
The way that he described it was a little bit of effort every lap that those dividends aggregated would pay off. That was something that has always stayed with me.
What is the most rewarding part of your job?
One of the projects I got to work on had to do with energy efficiencies, so we had partnerships with outside organizations to help reduce energy and it was learning new ways in the private sector to try and incorporate those ideas for the Navy. The completion of any project is really great. This one incorporated a lot of teamwork to build the energy resiliency in Ewa, that whole agriculture field.
We were able to broker a deal between the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard and HECO [Hawaiian Electric Company] for energy resiliency. I think that new ideas on how to continuously improve our resources here in Hawaii, which are so limited, are really important. I think when we combine those methods and reach those goals that helps with sustainability especially being on an island.
What does Native American Heritage Month mean to you?
It shows how resilient Native American people are throughout history with everything that they endured and went through.
Just the history of the Native American people doing the Long Walk and even towards the end of World War II, a lot of them supported the United States and military affiliations, especially with the code talkers, who played a significant role in America’s history.
About Native American Heritage Month
Celebrated every November, Native American Heritage Month honors the challenges faced by Native American people and their contributions to the Department of the Navy and to the nation.
“Throughout our nation's history, Native Americans have demonstrated exceptional bravery and dedication, both in times of peace and conflict,” said Carlos Del Toro, Secretary of the Navy, in a written statement about the month. “We extend our heartfelt gratitude and appreciation for the contributions made by Native American Sailors, Marines, civilians, and their families, both past and present.”
| Date Taken: | 11.08.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 11.08.2024 14:45 |
| Story ID: | 484979 |
| Location: | JOINT BASE PEARL HARBOR-HICKAM, HAWAII, US |
| Hometown: | FARMINGTON, NEW MEXICO, US |
| Web Views: | 81 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Native American Heritage Month: Realty Specialist Celebrates Navajo Heritage and Reflects on Military Journey, by Kyler Hood, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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