Andrew Silberman said once he heard the news of the attack, it only took a few minutes for him to tell his mother he was ready to fight.
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Hamas' attack on Israel came on Simchat Torah, one of the most joyous Jewish holidays of the year. On high holy days and shabbat, religious Jews are away from their phones and other electronics as they observe rest and worship.
"It's permissible to use electronics in order to save a life," Silberman said.
Silberman, who is from Chicago, said he checked his phone and found out his friend and fellow soldier Binyaminn was killed in battle. He flew out to Israel the next day.
"The sheer number of people that have lost their lives to terror is equivalent to some of the biggest disasters any country has experienced in history," he said.
But his will to fight meant saying goodbye to his mother Lenna.
"I'm really proud of his dedication, his commitment, and I'm a mother and no mother wants to send their child to war," she said.
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Lenna lives in Buffalo Grove, and said this is a time for people to stick together no matter their background.
"This was an act of terrorism not only against Jews. Hamas is a terrorist organization and they didn't care who they were hurting when they started this war on Saturday morning," she said.
Rabbi Avraham Kagan of Chabad of River North said his nephew and cousins have also been called to return to Israel to be deployed.
"People that are on the front lines, they are confident and resolute that evil will be obliterated," he said.
"Demand something better," said Lenna Silberman. "No mother should lose their child to war."