During Operation Iraqi Freedom, LTC Steve Russell commanded the 1st Battalion, 22nd Infantry ‘Regulars’ and conducted combat in Tikrit, Iraq from the Spring of 2003 to the Spring of 2004.  As a central player in the hunt and capture of Saddam Hussein, his battalion was broadly covered during the first year of the war by major television networks and in the print media.  His battalion was also featured in the television documentaries “Ace in the Hole” (The Discovery Channel) and “Saddam on the Run” (BBC Panorama).  Few individuals can provide such vivid, first-hand accounts from the freedom front.

LTC Russell retired from the U.S. Army after serving 21 years in Airborne, Light and Mechanized assignments in the Arctic, the desert, the Pacific, Europe and the Continental United States.  He served more than 7 years overseas and was deployed operationally to Kosovo, Kuwait, Afghanistan and Iraq.  LTC Russell received the Legion of Merit, the Bronze Star Medal with Valor Device and Oak Leaf Cluster, the Combat Infantryman’s Badge and the Valorous Unit Award.  He is the Founder and Chairman of Vets for Victory, an organization dedicated to educating the public about the war on terror and what will be necessary to achieve victory.