In 1964, during the height of the North Yemen civil war between an Egyptian-supported Yemeni republic and the tribal armies of the deposed Yemeni Imam, a small group of Southern Baptist medical missionaries petitioned the Yemeni government for permission to open a clinic in Yemen. The Baptist mission in Jibla was unique in that most other Middle East missions were withdrawn during the 1950s due to increased nationalist and religious opposition to their continued presence. In this vein, the appearance of Southern Baptist missionaries in 1964 is all the more surprising and worthy of explanation. Using oral histories conducted with the original missionary members and missionary archival records, this conference paper focuses on the interaction between the missionaries, their U.S. donors, and the nationalist Yemeni government during a time when few Americans ventured into this remote corner of South Arabia. During the 1960s in particular, the U.S. maintained a limited diplomatic presence in Yemen and was willing to support any program that could spread their presence in the country with minimal financial and personnel investment. The U.S. consulate was even willing to lend logistical aid to a religious institution with a clear Evangelical motivation. The Baptist mission accepted this aid selectively and often grappled with its identity during a period of growing anti-American sentiments in the Middle East. What emerged during the first decades of the mission was a triangular identity and allegiance that comprised the interests of the young Yemeni nationalist government, the expectations of Southern Baptist missionaries and their donors, and American political interests in Yemen.