Russell Adam Burnham

Russell Adam Burnham
Then Staff Sgt Russell Adam Burnham, U.S. Army Medical Corps NCO of the Year (2007)
Born	(1979-09-06) September 6, 1979 (age 37) Tucson, Arizona
Allegiance	United States of America
Service/branch	United States Army
Years of service	2001–present
Rank	Captain
Battles/wars	War in Afghanistan
Awards	Eagle Scout (March 20, 1995, Catalina Council) U.S. Army Soldier of the Year (2003) U.S. Army Forces Command (FORSCOM) Soldier of the Year (2003) American Legion Military Spirit of Service (2004) MEDCOM Noncommissioned Officer of the Year (2007) Meritorious Service Medal Army Commendation Medal Army Achievement Medal Army Good Conduct Medal National Defense Service Medal Global War on Terrorism Service Medal Expert Marksmanship Badge with Rifle and Pistol bars Expert Field Medical Badge Air Assault Badge

Captain Russell Adam Burnham (born September 6, 1979), U.S. Army Physician Assistant, is the great-grandson of Frederick Russell Burnham (1861–1947), D.S.O., the 2003 U.S. Army Soldier of the Year, 2007 U.S. Army Medical Corps NCO of the Year, and an Eagle Scout.

Burnham was serving as an Evacuation Specialist with HHC, 1/5 Infantry Battalion at Fort Lewis, Washington, when he decided to compete in the preliminary competitions for the 2003 Soldier of the Year. After winning his battalion's honor, he went on to win the competition for 1st Brigade, 25th Infantry Division, and later for I Corps and Fort Lewis. He then competed in, and won, the U.S. Army Forces Command Soldier of the Year competition, which afforded him the opportunity to represent the largest command in the Army at the Soldier of the Year competition. Burnham won the competition, consisting of several grueling mental and physical tasks, and was reassigned to Washington, DC to serve as an ambassador for the Army. For the next year, Burnham was stationed at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center and he represented the Army at events such as: the Association of the United States Army National Convention, the Veterans of Foreign Wars National Convention, the NASCAR Daytona 500, and a Washington Redskins football game. He also joined comedian, now Senator, Al Franken on a USO tour of Iraq and Afghanistan in December 2003.

In 2005 Burnham was promoted to Sergeant and reassigned to Fort Sam Houston. In 2007 Staff Sergeant Burnham won the title of NCO of the Year for the U.S. Army Medical Corps. Representing MEDCOM, he competed against NCOs from all 13 major commands in the U.S. Army Best Warrior Competition, but was unable to duplicate his victory from 2003.