Leadership forged through adversity.
Transformation built on truth.
Built from real experience.
Some lessons can only be earned.
Eric Scott Russell spent decades earning them; in the mountains of foreign continents, in the silence before a mission, and in the quiet discipline of rebuilding a life from the inside out.
A former U.S. Army Master Sergeant, Eric’s military journey traces the full arc of elite American warfare. He began his service in the United States Army Infantry before advancing to the 75th Ranger Regiment. From there he earned the Green Beret and served in the 5th Special Forces Group before ultimately advancing to 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta, also known as Delta Force — the most elite tier of military operations in the world. Over the course of his career, which included eight combat tours, he led complex missions all across the globe, developing a reputation for composure under extreme pressure, decisive leadership, and operational precision in environments where every decision carried ultimate consequence and the margin for error was zero.
After his military tenure, Eric continued serving his country in the intelligence community, applying his expertise in high-level environments demanding discretion, adaptability, and precision.
His leadership story didn’t end there. Eric managed a 250-acre operational horse farm in Pennsylvania, overseeing up to 30 horses; an endeavor that demanded the same discipline and intentionality he brought to every mission.
The most defining chapter, however, has been personal. After a profound transformation through faith and sobriety, Eric made an intentional move to Ohio to be closer to family where he met his wife, Rebecca. Together, they are building something purposeful.
That purpose is Iron and Light.
Today, Eric brings a rare convergence of elite military experience, global operational leadership, and hard-earned personal transformation to his work as a speaker and leadership consultant, serving first responders, military and veteran communities, faith-based audiences, executives, organizations, high performers, and athletes. His work is grounded in a simple truth: leadership is not defined by title or position, but by character, resilience, accountability, a commitment to something greater than ourselves, and the standard we choose to keep.
Iron & Light exists to help people lead with strength, live with purpose, and move through adversity with resilience. We are grounded in lived experience, faith, accountability, disciplined growth, and a commitment to something greater than ourselves.
Rebecca Rose Russell is the Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Iron & Light, where she helps build, create, and carry forward a mission rooted in faith, resilience, accountability, and redemption.
Her professional journey has never followed a straight line. She has worked in investigations, business ownership, banking, property management, logistics, transportation, recruiting, healthcare support, and leadership-focused roles. Different industries. Different titles. Same drive: create, build, solve problems, connect with people, and turn ideas into something meaningful.
At Iron & Light, Rebecca brings those strengths together to build the organization behind the message. She leads creative direction and content, marketing, operations, strategy, and the countless details that turn a vision into something real.
What began largely as a behind-the-scenes role has become something more. Rebecca now speaks alongside her husband, Eric, sharing a deeply personal testimony of faith, transformation, and redemption.
For approximately 35 years, beginning around the age of twelve, Rebecca searched for truth, purpose and her version of God through the New Age, witchcraft, and the occult. As time went on, she became deeply immersed in that world, believing she was pursuing light and spiritual truth. Eventually, she walked away from the beliefs and practices that had shaped more than three decades of her life and surrendered her life to Jesus Christ.
The story she never imagined sharing publicly has now become part of the mission she feels called to carry. Through Iron & Light, Rebecca speaks openly about where she has been, what Jesus has done in her life, and the hope that no one is too lost, no past is too dark, and no story is beyond redemption.
At the center of her life is her faith in God. Her relationship with Jesus has changed everything: her outlook, her marriage, her decisions, and the way she shows up in this world. She trusts His direction, even when it doesn’t look like what she had planned, and is grateful for the unexpected chapters that have brought her exactly where she is today.
Together, Rebecca and Eric are building Iron & Light around the values they live by: faith, resilience, accountability, character, and the standard we choose to keep when no one is watching.
