Rebecca Smith was a recent hire for The Capital Gazette in their Annapolis, Maryland, office, the Baltimore Sun reported. A former co-worker remembered her as an upbeat colleague always ready to lend an ear.
Smith, 34, was one of five people killed when a gunman opened fire in the Capital Gazette office Thursday afternoon. She grew up in the Baltimore area and lived in eastern Baltimore County with her fiancé, according to the Sun.
She worked as a sales assistant at the Capital Gazette.
Justin Rebbert, 42, said he worked with Smith in 2013 at Freestate Ambulance in Linthicum Heights, a company that provides ambulance and medical transportation services in Baltimore and surrounding counties.
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Rebbert described Smith, who was a marketing director for the ambulance service, as a cheerful employee with a strong work ethic who was always ready to make conversation, even during times he was feeling low.
“If I or anyone else would want to talk to her, she was always willing to talk about anything,” Rebbert said. “It was good to know there were other people going through things similar to what I was going through.”