Father Duenas Memorial School student Lazaro Quinata and his teacher, Tony Blas, spent a year researching the life of Francisco N.F. Blas – the one person from Guam to fight in the infamous World War II D-Day battle in Normandy, France. As part of the MARC Seminar Series, on January 28, 2016 at 5:30 p.m. in the University of Guam CLASS Lecture Hall, Quinata and Tony Blas will share their research and their experiences as one of 15 student-teacher teams selected by the Normandy Institute to engage in a rigorous study of D-Day and World War II.

The student-teacher pair participated in a scholarly study of the war memorials in the Washington D.C. area, and walked the beaches of Normandy. They were also able to lay a wreath at Francisco Blas’ grave marker, where Quinata delivered a eulogy to honor his life.

“It is no easy task to prepare a eulogy for a man I have never met,” Quinata expressed in the eulogy. “But I hope that the words I speak may do him justice as he has made such an immense impact on my life and I sincerely hope that through my words, he may too make one on yours.”

At the seminar, Quinata and Blas will discuss the life of Francisco Blas, who was enlisted in the U.S. Navy and served in World War II. He perished aboard the USS Rich two days after D-Day commenced.

For more information please contact LaVonne Guerrero-Meno at (671)735-2150 or lavonneg@triton.uog.edu.