Vicente T . Blaz Brigadier General Vicente Tomás Blaz Garrido ( born February 14 , 1928 ) , also known as Ben Blaz , is a retired United States Marine Corps Brigadier General from the United States territory of Guam . Blaz served in the Marine Corps from 1951 to until July 1 , 1980 . Prior to his retirement , he served as the Deputy Chief of Staff for Reserve Affairs , Headquarters Marine Corps , Washington , D . C . Blaz was elected the delegate to Congress from Guam in 1984 as a Republican . He served in the U . S . House of Representatives from 1985 until 1993 . As his mother ' s maiden name was Garrido , he is sometimes called Ben Garrido Blaz , in accordance with Spanish naming customs . Biography . In 1947 , he was awarded a scholarship to the University of Notre Dame . Marine Corps career . At the beginning of the Korean War , Blaz joined the Marine Corps Reserve and attended Officer Candidate School . He graduated in 1951 with a Bachelor of Science degree . He was commissioned a second lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps after graduation . He subsequently attended George Washington University , Washington , D . C . , where he received a Master of Arts degree in 1963 . Service schools Blaz attended include the Navy ’ s School of Naval Justice for legal officers , Newport , Rhode Island ; the Army ’ s Artillery and Guided Missile School , Fort Sill , Oklahoma ; the Marine Corps Command and Staff College , Quantico , Virginia ; and , the Naval War College , Newport , Rhode Island , where he was designated a Distinguished Graduate . His thesis , The Cross of Micronesia , was published in the " Naval War College Review " and entered verbatim in the " Congressional Record " in August 1971 . General Blaz served in a variety of command and staff billets throughout the Marine Corps , highlighted in 1972 by his assignment as Commanding Officer , 9th Marine Regiment , which was one of the major units involved in the liberation of his native Guam during World War II . From September 1972 to August 1975 , General Blaz served as Chief , United Nations and Maritime Matters Branch , International Negotiations Division , Organization of the Joint Chiefs of Staff , Washington , D . C . In this assignment , he represented the Joint Chiefs of Staff on U . S . Delegations to several international multi - lateral negotiations in Helsinki ( Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe ) and Geneva ( Law of War ) and was an action officer on Law of the Sea matters . In December 1974 , the University of Guam conferred the degree of Doctor of Laws on General Blaz . Blaz retired from the Marine Corps with the rank of Brigadier General in 1980 . Blaz is the highest ranked Chamorro to have served in the Marine Corps . He was a professor at the University of Guam , and was then elected as a Republican to the House in 1984 . Delegate , U . S . Congress . Blaz served as a Delegate from his native Guam to the U . S . House of Representatives for eight years from January 3 , 1985 to January 3 , 1993 . Blaz was the second Chamorro to serve in the U . S . House of Representatives . He served on the Armed Services , the Interior and Insular Affairs Committees , and the Select Committee on Aging . During his first term , the 99th United States Congress , he introduced legislation — the Veterans ' Educational Assistance Act — to expand eligibility under the G . I . Bill . Defeated for re - election by Democrat Robert A . Underwood , in 1992 , he retired to Ordot , Guam . Awards and honors . Blaz ' s military awards include : In 1988 , Blaz was honored by his alma mater , when the Notre Dame Alumni Association presented him with the Corby Award , which honors alumni who have distinguished themselves in military service .