War History Online proudly presents this Guest Piece from Abraham Garcia First Lieutenant Manuela Orquejo started her military service when she signed the
“She was so successful in this capacity that her commanding officer commended her and 12 men under her command. On July 19, 1943, she was promoted to the rank of First Lieutenant under Col. Hugh Straughn, overall commander of Filipino-American Irregular Troops (F.A.I.T) and assigned to the Intelligence Operation, for which she had ample experience.
She was also trained in self-defense, proper handling of different types of firearms, to read and draw geographical maps, use signal codes and passwords, and continued as a First Aid provider in the Medical Corps.
Lt. Manuela Orquejo was attached with the US 6th Army’s Alamo Scouts on February 1945. Her mission brought her into frequent dangerous situations and the risk of being caught, interrogated and killed.
She was an active participant in many combat battles with her combat group under. Lt. Col. Eliseo De Lumban. With 12 guerillas under her command, several Japanese encampments were pinpointed, and their position and range were reported to American aviators.”
