D.H. (Herb) Wills fought the Japanese on Bataan, was captured and imprisoned for a year at the infamous Cabanatuan camp, then another year at Davao prison, on Mindanao. Embarking for dreaded imprisonment in Japan in 1944, he dove overboard and swam four miles back to Mindanao where he joined the ragtag guerrillas, electing to stay and fight until the island's liberation rather than leave by submarine. Successful campaigns by the Filipino guerrillas, led by Lt. Wills, at Misamis, Malaband, and Dipolog were instrumental in the liberation of Mindanao.