Russell Steindam: A Fifth-Generation Soldier and Medal of Honor Recipient

There are just over 3,500 people in American history who have received the Medal of Honor. Russell Steindam is one of them — and one of only 250 from the Vietnam War.

A fifth-generation soldier from Plano, Texas, Steinem came from a family for whom military service was not an obligation but a calling. He deployed to Vietnam on October 1st, 1969. Four months into his tour, during a night patrol in February 1970, his unit came under attack and took cover in a bomb crater. When a grenade landed among his men, one soldier absorbed the blast with his own body. Then a second grenade was thrown in. Without hesitation, Steinem threw himself on it.

He did not survive. But the members of his command group did.

In December 1971, Steindam was awarded the Medal of Honor in recognition of his gallantry and self-sacrifice. His brother, reflecting on the moment, put it plainly: "He didn't hesitate for a moment. He just jumped straight on that grenade and that was it."

Steindam may not be a household name, but his story carries the full weight of what the Medal of Honor represents. Recently, his family donated his uniform to the Military Heritage Collection of North Texas, near his hometown — a tangible piece of history preserved for the community that shaped him.

"When you sacrifice your life, knowingly sacrifice your life by throwing yourself on a grenade to save other men," one family member said, "that is the ultimate sacrifice."