Russell Adam Burnham

Infobox Military Person
name= Russell Adam Burnham
born= 1979
died=
placeofbirth= Tucson, Arizona
placeofdeath=


caption=Staff Sgt Russell Adam Burnham, U.S. Army Medical Corps NCO of the Year (2007)
nickname=
allegiance= United States of America
branch= United States Army
serviceyears=2001 - present
rank=Staff Sergeant
commands=
unit=
battles=
awards= Eagle Scout (1996) 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)
laterwork=

Russell Adam Burnham (b 1979), U.S. Army soldier, is the great-grandson of Frederick Russell Burnham (1861-1947), D.S.O., the 2003 U.S. Army Soldier of the Year,cite web |last =Preston|first =Kenneth O.|authorlink =Kenneth Preston |coauthors = |year =2003|url=http://www.army.mil/leaders/SMA/NCOandSOY/default.htm|title =Sgt Major, US Army |format = html|work = |publisher =U.S. Army|accessdate =2006-04-22] 2007 U.S. Army Medical Corps NCO of the Year,cite web |url=http://www.army.mil/bestwarrior/2007/warriors/burnham_russell.html |title=United States Army Best Warrior Competition |accessdate=2007-10-10 |last= |first= |coauthors= |date= |work= |publisher=U.S. Army] and an Eagle Scout.cite web |last = |first = |year = |url =http://www.whiteeagledistrict.org/Burnham.html#Frederick%20Russell%20Burnham|title =Frederick Russell Burnham |format = html|work = |publisher =White Eagle District|accessdate=2007-08-19]

Military career

U.S. Army Soldier of the Year

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. [ [http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/142360_soldier03.html Fort Lewis specialist is named Army Soldier of the Year, Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Phuong Cat Le, October 3, 2003] . Retrieved on 2008-07-09.] For the next year, Burnham represented the Army at various events, including joining comedian Al Franken on a USO tour of Iraq and Afghanistan in December 2003.

Medical Command Noncommissioned Officer of the Year

From 2004 to 2005, Burnham was stationed at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center and in 2006 he was promoted to Sergeant and transferred 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,cite web |url=http://www.army.mil/bestwarrior/2007/warriors/burnham_russell.html |title=United States Army Best Warrior Competition |accessdate=2007-10-10 |last= |first= |coauthors= |date= |work= |publisher=U.S. Army] cite web |url=http://www.ima.lee.army.mil/sites/pao/2007_NCOY-SOYPressKit/images/MEDCOM_bio_burnham.jpg|title=MEDCOM bio burnham |accessdate=2007-09-26 |last= |first= |coauthors= |date= |work= |publisher=U.S. Army] but was unable to duplicate his victory from 2003. [ [http://www.army.mil/-news/2007/10/08/5495-staff-sgt-seifert-spc-seeker-named-armys-best-warriors/ Staff Sgt. Seifert, Spc. Seeker Named Army's Best Warriors, US Army website, Beth Reece, October 8, 2007] . Retrieved on 2008-07-08.]

Physician Assistant Training

Based on the board results from summer 2007, Burnham was selected to attend the Interservice Physician Assistant Program at Fort Sam Houston beginning in April 2009 upon completion of prerequisite courses at San Antonio College.

Awards and Decorations

*2003 U.S. Army Soldier of the Year
*American Legion 2004 Military Spirit of Service award for his work with the Boy Scouts while stationed at Fort Belvoir.cite web |url=http://www.army.mil/-news/2007/10/04/5365-best-warrior-competitor-continues-family-tradition-of-military-excellence |title=Best Warrior Continues Tradition of Military Excellence |accessdate=2007-10-10 |last=Strasser |first=Mike |coauthors= |date= |work= |publisher=U.S. Army]
*2007 U.S. Army Medical Command NCO of the Year
*Meritorious Service Medal
*Army Commendation Medal
*Army Achievement Medal
*Good Conduct Medal
*National Defense Service Medal
*Global War on Terrorism Service Medal
*Non-Commissioned Officer Development Ribbon
*Army Service Ribbon
*Expert Field Medical Badge
*Air Assault Badge

Lineage

Burnham is a descendent of Thomas Burnham (1617-1688) of Hartford, Connecticut, the first American ancestor of a large number of Burnhams.cite book |last =Bradford |first =Mary E |authorlink = |coauthors =Richard H Bradford |title =An American family on the African frontier: the Burnham family letters, 1893–1896 |publisher =Roberts Rinehart Publishers|date =1993 |location =Niwot, Colorado|id =ISBN 1879373661] The descendents of Thomas Burnham have been noted in every American war, including the French and Indian war.cite book |title =Press Reference Library: Notables of the West |publisher =International News Service |location=New York|date =1915 |oclc=5532411]

*Frederick Russell Burnham (Great-grandfather) - A highly decorated British Army scout, fought in the First Matabele War, Second Matabele War, and the Second Boer War; taught scouting to Robert Baden-Powell, becoming one of the inspirations for the founding of the international Scouting Movement; named an Honorary Scout by the Boy Scouts of America. Mount Burnham is named after this man.cite web |last = |first = |authorlink = |coauthors = |year = 200|url =http://goldiproductions.com/BoerWar_Museum/Boer90i_pastdis_burnham.html |title =Great Canadian Heritage Discoveries |work =Biographical sketch |publisher =The Canadian Anglo-Boer War Museum |accessdate=2007-03-31]
*Roderick Deane Burnham (Grandfather - paternal) - U.S. Army infantry in World War I, fought in France.
*Timothy "Red" Taylor (Grandfather - maternal) - U.S. Army engineer in World War II; landed in Normandy in a glider during D-Day and fought in the Battle of the Bulge.
*Frederick Russell Burnham II (Father) - U.S. Army communications, fought in Vietnam; served as a troop leader in the Boy Scouts of America.

Personal

A native of Tucson, Arizona, Burnham earned an associates degree from Rio Salado College and is a Boy Scouts of America volunteer. He is married with three children.

Footnotes