Steve Russ – U.S. Navy 1966-71

Steve Russ grew up in Libertyville, Illinois, and was the first in his family to attend college. He attended Northwestern University on an NROTC scholarship and was commissioned in the Navy and posted to San Diego. Steve’s first assignment was commissioning the USS Niagara Falls which eventually was deployed to Vietnam replenishing both Navy and Coast Guard ships with all supplies except for ammo and fuel.

Steve was eventually transferred to USS Kishwaukee, a gasoline tanker carrying 350,000 gallons of various fuels operating between Da Nang and the Cua Viet river, pumping fuel to Marine storage bladders on shore. According to Steve, “Subic Bay was always an interesting place back then. When the carrier groups came back, they had to set a limit in terms of people going off Subic, so they counted the gate. Once 10,000 people left the gate, they'd close it down. And the town was always crazy. As a junior officer, I got assigned as shore patrol support. And these guys would come off the line, they were drinking a lot, and you never know what was going to happen.”

Steve’s last assignment was to the USS Reeves, a guided missile destroyer/light cruiser.

“It's (The Navy) a great career. And even if it's not a career, it's certainly a great springboard for whatever your career might be.” - Steve Russ