Rachel Erin Puckett was born 18 August 1994 in Lexington, North Carolina, and at a young age moved to nearby Browns Summit. She attended Monticello-Brown Summit Elementary School, Northeast Middle School, and Walter Hines Page Senior High School, where she participated in the International Baccalaureate Program and Junior Reserve Officer Training Course (JROTC). Shortly before graduating in 2012, Puckett enlisted in The National Guard of the United States for one year, before heading off to college.

Puckett traveled to the Military Entrance and Processing Station (MEPS) in Charlotte, North Carolina, where she enlisted and chose Military Occupational Specialty 92A, Automated Logistical Supply. In September 2012, she was sent to Fort Sill, Oklahoma, for basic training, and then to Fort Lee, Virginia, for Advanced Individual Training (AIT). At the end of AIT in March 2013, Puckett was named the distinguished honor graduate and received an Army Commendation Medal.

After training, Puckett returned to her National Guard unit in Greensboro, where she was appointed the Humvee driver for the colonel and sergeant major. She was also assigned to run the Command Post of the Future (COPF); a C2 software system that allows commanders to maintain topsight over the battlefield. In the fall of 2013, Puckett began attending the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, as part of their Veterans Access Program (VAP); a nursing program for military veterans.