WWII Survivor Stories

Left behind due to illness. Cynthia Tenorio Terlaje (1935 – ) and her family were making their way out of Manenggon at the end of the Japanese occupation of Guam. However, Terlaje grew gravely ill with a virus that rendered her unable to travel and keep up with everyone on foot. Her parents feared for the entire family; they were worried that the Japanese would find them. Because of this fear, the family left Terlaje behind in a cave.

Altar server at war’s beginning. Fidel Toves Blas, (1932 – 2019) known to family and friends as “Dek,” was born in Hagåtña. His parents Concepcion Lujan Toves (Familian Capili) and Atanacio Albino Blas (Familian Haniu) had 12 children, and Dek was their third-born child.

Moved to CHagui’an Yigo. When they learned of the Japanese bombing at Sumai on 8 December 1941, many CHamorus hurried to hide. For most, it was several miles to safety, but for Rosario “Charo” Flores Leon Guerrero (1920 – ), it was just a walk two miles northwest from her home to a well-built and furnished family ranch at CHagui’an, Yigo.

A lover of songs and poetry. A lifelong lover of learning and music, Francisca Quintanilla Franquez (1920 – 2019) often found herself with a song in her heart. Whether she was teaching the parts of the coconut tree or honoring her mother, she loved to sing and recite poetry. 

They had God and each other. During the war, Ana “Ann” Anderson Atoigue Muna (1934 – 2022) and her family had two things: God and each other. They knew despite the difficulties of war, God had a reason. He had a plan. Together, through routine, they lived. Together, through prayer, they survived. 

Hid from the bombings in a hole in Toto. Agnes “Neng” Guzman Duenas Perez (1930 – 2022) was 11 years when the war broke out in Guam. Perez is the oldest of the eight children of Jose Duenas (Familian Pepero) and Maria Pangelinan Guzman. Her family had been living in the San Antonio District of Hagåtña on the day of the attack. She recalled being at the Catholic Mass to celebrate Santa Marian Kamalen’s feast day when she saw the Japanese planes and heard the bomb explosions. 

Born on the March to Manenggon. Rosanne Borja Santos Ada, (1944-2021), was born at the end of June 1944, the eighth child of Ana Sablan Borja Santos and Mariano Barcinas Santos. Pregnant with Rosanne, Ana and Mariano were forced to march along with their seven other children from Sumai to Fena and to the Manenggon concentration camp. She was born en route to the camp.

Emotional toll of war. As a young teenager, Justo Torre Leon Guerrero (1928 – ) experienced the ravages of war. Escaping the harsh torture that his older brother endured at the hands of the Japanese, the emotional toll was no less harsh and affected him for the rest of his life. Choices he made in later life were a direct result of the war.