As the last few days of the 2019 spring semester came to an end, a group of senior students from the University of Hawaii at Manoa did not take the final exam. Instead, on this day in early May, they showed their knowledge of the subject in a very personal way in the Kuykendall Auditorium.

Approximately 30 students from the Army Reserve Officer Training Team, dressed in refreshing white uniforms, gathered to watch the "virtual employee riding" slideshow, accompanied by video clips. The lecture was led by a trainer from the US Army Combat Research Institute and explained the daily breakdown of the historic Battle of Vanat in July 2008, which took their own lives: First Lieutenant Jonathan Brost Roma, graduated from the UH ROTC class in 2006.

“When the gunfire finally calmed down in Vanat, 9 American soldiers were killed, 27 were wounded, and at least dozens of Taliban fighters were killed,” said an article in the Army Times in 2018. "This battle and previous deployments made the battalion the most ornately decorated battalion in the global war on terrorism to date."

The Battle of Vanat is the most popular virtual staff of the U.S. Army forces nationwide and has been part of the core curriculum for UH trainees since 2015. When the trainer used the Socratic teaching method, the seniors answered historical questions and had some questions of their own.

They learned that after graduating 13 years ago, Brostrom continued to be stationed in Afghanistan, where he and his eight soldiers from the 2nd Battalion of the 173rd Airborne Brigade of the 503rd Infantry Regiment were in a battle It was attacked when the cruel war was about to end. It also requested deployment in Kunar and Nuristan provinces.

ROTC students have not lost the serious idea that UH graduates like them were killed shortly after graduation.

Cadet Isaiah Thompson, a senior communications student, said: “I just caught a glimpse of the potential heart and courage shown by First Lieutenant Brostrom and his platoon to remind people of the leaders acquired through the program. Type, for the rest of us to inherit the mana (power) and passion of the warrior’s legacy."

Sabrina Olaes, a senior nursing student, also agrees with these ideas. "The soldiers at the Battle of Vanat demonstrated resilience, courage and a spirit of service to others," she said. "Moreover, as we are about to begin service, this exercise shows that we must shoulder heavy responsibilities and responsibilities for the rest of our career as Army officers."

Participating in the UH "Virtual Riding" training is a special guest: retired US Army Colonel David Brostrom, Jonathan's father, since 2015, he has come to the campus every year with the senior officers of the reserve officer training team Share his thoughts and insights.

Colonel Brostrom remembered receiving a long-distance call from his deployed son in the middle of the night. Jonathan told his father that the platoon sergeant was killed in this battle, and he was killed because of it. He asked his father what to do. "I told him,'Don't be sad, but come forward. Lead them and make sure your soldiers are taken care of,'" Brostrom told the riveting students.

Lieutenant Colonel Daniel Gregory, UH Professor of Military Science and Commander of the UH Army Reserve Officer Training Team, said: “We thank Colonel Brostrom for sharing Jon’s story on such a personal level. Every student will remember Jon’s sacrifice and his leadership. The dedication of the soldiers. We are all better leaders for this experience."

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