ROXAS CITY – A book based on the memoirs of bemedalled Major Jose Gardose Falco of Tapaz town, Capiz province was presented during the recent conference on the 80th anniversary of World War II.

ERWIN Bonifacio with copies of the book Courage Amidst Chaos that narrates the memoirs of Major Jose Gardose Falco during World War II. (Erwin Bonifacio)

Courage Amidst Chaos written by Erwin Bonifacio was part of the War & Memory 80 Years After conference from Feb. 18 to 19 in Intramuros, Manila.

“I am honored to be the only Visayan writer – lined up alongside four other Filipino and American authors – whose books were launched during the recent international conference on the 80th anniversary of World War II,” said Bonifacio, a former radio journalist from Sigma town, Capiz.

Bonifacio was unable to personally attend but his book was presented at the conference at the Lyceum of the Philippines University by independent historian and photojournalist Jerome Kleiman.

The conference was convened by the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP) and the Philippine World War II Memorial Foundation with Lyceum of the Philippines University.

Bonifacio said the book originally released in 2024 used the unpublished memoirs of Falco in narrating the resistance movement during the Japanese occupation.

When the war broke out, Falco was deployed in Mindanao under the United States Army Forces in the Far East (USAFFE).

Gen. William Sharp surrendered Mindanao in 1942 but Falco refused to give up as third lieutenant of the 61st Infantry Regiment in Lanao.

Falco returned to his hometown and joined what would become the Sixth Military District or the Free Panay Guerilla Forces led by Gen. Macario Peralta.

In September 1942, Falco led forces that successfully ambushed Japanese soldiers in Cuartero town, Capiz.

Falco showed gallantry when besieged troops liberated Capiz (now Roxas City) from Japanese forces in December 1944.

His troops deployed to Iloilo and augmented guerillas that would eventually lead to the defeat of the Japanese in Panay and Romblon Islands in March 1945.

In 2018, the United States Congress recognized Falco’s heroism by posthumously awarding him the Congressional Gold Medal, the highest civilian award in the United States.