Stewart was born on December 20th 1988, the son of Dwayne Heim and Michelle Streeb. He was raised in the small town of Staunton Ill.
Heim enjoyed hunting, fishing, and football. He played football from 5th grade through his senior year in high school. In 2007 he graduated from Staunton High School.
Upon graduation he began work in Texas doing commercial tile jobs. After that summer he attended Ranken Technical College. After a few months, Stewart decided tech school wasn’t for him and joined the United States Marine Corp. On April 14th 2008 he was sent San Diego, CA for his basic training at the recruit depot.
He graduated on July 10th, 2008 and got to take a brief visit home before he checked in at Camp Pendleton, CA for Infantry Training School. Graduating with honors he was promoted to Private First Class.
Stewart checked in to his first duty station at Twentynine Palms, California and was assigned to the 3rd Battalion 4th Marines, Lima Company where he began training. He traveled to India where his company trained the India’s Special Forces. After returning back to the states they began cold weather mountain training in Bridgeport, CA. His unit was then deployed to Now Zad, Afghanistan where Stewart was a machine gunner.
After Heim returned home from Afghanistan and a brief visit in his home town, he was nominated for Infantry Squad Leaders Course in camp Pendleton. He attended the 10 week school and graduated in the top squad. When he returned to his battalion in Twentynine Palms he was promoted to a squad leader.
Preparing for his 2nd deployment, he volunteered to be a designated marksman in the Scout Sniper Platoon. The battalion deployed to Gerashk Valley on the Helmand River. While there, Stewart was promoted to Corporal. On June 30th Stewart was shot in the left chest and left arm by an enemy sniper. He wounds were critical. Once stable, they transported him to Bethesda, Maryland where he began to recover. Thanks to God, all his brothers and the many people that supported him through his recovery, he has stayed positive and maintains in good spirits.