Conventional wisdom might lead you to believe that three island boys who volunteered for the U.S. Army's Jungle Operations Training Course would be able to breeze through the program with minimal effort. After all, they grew-up with dense terrain, harsh conditions and sudden climate shifts literally as their backyards. So, piece of cake, right?

Umm...no.

Sergeant First Class Gary Santos told KUAM News, "Hawaii and Guam have two totally types of jungle environments. We did learn a great of material from the jungle instructors out there from the 25th ID, as far as how to survive and conduct operations in the jungle environment."

Jungle School is held on Oahu, and is one of the Army's most-demanding courses. It's 12 days of hell, with a dropout rate of 50% - meaning half of those who start the course don't finish. But our Guardsmen took on the challenge.

And passed.

"Our jungle is very unique, as far as terrain," described Sergeant Andrew Quinata, a native of Ipan. "Hawaii has a lot of elevation and our jungle here, it's low, it's thick, and often we don't even know if we're going in the direction we need to. But bringing back the knowledge that we learned from JOTC, and just providing that guide to our soldiers will definitely help not just our soldiers here, but the whole National Guard itself."

And like true Guamanians, our boys supported one another, and didn't quit.

SGT Quinata said teamwork was the order of the day, saying without hesitation, "Moving as a squad," when it comes to his takeaway. "Getting through this course is not just something you do on your own, it's actually a squad-type-of-deal. If you're not a great team player, you're not going to get through this course alone. You have to be a great team player and you have to trust the guys that you have in your squad to complete the missions that they us do."

The experience wasn't merely about being the first locals to earn the coveted Jungle Tab, a universally-respected symbol of having proven your mettle, survival skills, ability to fight in tough conditions and grit. These island defenders are now pioneers, leading-off the journey to develop a similar course locally to optimize our readiness.

SFC Santos continued, "We look forward to training future soldiers and prepare them for the Jungle Operations Training Center in Hawaii. We also plan on going back to get Jungle Instructor-certified, and then also bring JOTC to Guam and then hopefully establish Guam as the base for all Army National Guard soldiers."

If you needed any validation of their 671 esprit de corps, consider what Sergeant First Class Danielglen Salas did. After dislocating his shoulder on a mountainside, he reported to an emergency room, used a waiting room chair to pop his injured shoulder back in - himself - then immediately returned to train with his unit.

(Let that sink in the next time you sit at your comfy desk and have a slight headache or are doing homework and have a minor stiff neck.)

Despite how tough it was, the grind paid off. Both Santos and Quinata shared what remember to be the most-rewarding part of Jungle School. "The best day? Oh, it was graduation. Because we were done with it," Santos said smirking. "We got to come home and share all the experience that we have and bring it to our soldiers and our organization."

And Quinata made both servicemen laugh as he said, "The best part was when we finally got to shower after the three-day [final] event, we came out and we're like 'YES!' and we finally got to relax in our own hotel room."

So gentlemen, congratulations on earning your tabs - we appreciate your hustle, your leadership and your inspiration to your troops. And, as always, si yu'os ma'ase for your service.