Sault Sainte Marie, Michigan
Brandon K. Steffey was known as "The Big Teddy Bear" because of his smile and the comforting hugs he doled out - all 6-foot-3, 200-plus pounds of him.
"Brandon was a very kind and considerate person," said John Sherry, a principal at Sault Area High School in Steffey's hometown of Sault Sainte Marie, Mich. "A gentle giant with a very good sense of humor."
Sherry said Steffey played football at his school and then transferred to play baseball at Brimley High School, where he graduated in 2005.
A friend, Timothy Shaw, remembered Steffey as polite and honest, with the exception of one time when he pulled off a win in a cribbage game by pegging extra points during temporary power outages on a stormy night in Michigan's Upper Peninsula.
Steffey's uncle, Jim Worsham, said Steffey's decision to join the Army followed a family tradition of military service.
The 23-year-old was killed Oct. 25 in Laghman province by a roadside bomb. He was assigned to a military police detachment out of Fort Hood.
"He was so proud of what he was doing during his deployment," his wife, Andrea, said, adding that he also was a doting father to his young daughter.
I was serving in the same sector as Brandon when he and his K9 Maci were killed. They were a superb team, and their loss was deeply felt. RIP
Scott Cunningham
February 13, 2018 | Leavenworth, KS
A true hero... he will not be forgotten.
Linda
October 26, 2016 | Sacramento, CA
John
October 25, 2014 | Chesterfield, MI
John
October 25, 2013 | Chesterfield, MI
Not forgotten
AJ
October 24, 2013 | Rochester, MI
John
October 25, 2012 | Chesterfield, MI
October 25, 2011
To the family and friends of Spc. Brandon Steffey:
Please accept my remembrance of Brandon on the anniversary of his passing and know that he will never be forgotten.
Peggy Childers
October 26, 2011 | Carson City, NV
John
October 25, 2011 | Chesterfield, MI
R.I.P. Man, always thinking about you
SGT. Keane, Kyle
July 25, 2011 | Killeen, TX