Biography

J.C. Falenschek was born in 1956 at the U.S. Naval Submarine Base in Groton, Connecticut. As the son of a career Navy serviceman, his family relocated to Minnesota in 1959, eventually settling in a northern suburb of St. Paul. He attended Centennial Schools, where he completed his primary and secondary education.

Following graduation, Mr. Falenschek explored various professional opportunities while cultivating his passion for martial arts, which he began studying at the age of thirteen. He later joined Honeywell, working in one of their semiconductor facilities as a process sustaining engineer. Concurrently, he pursued martial arts training, earning a Black Belt in American Tae Kwon Do. Building on this achievement, he established his own martial arts school while also competing regionally as an amateur kickboxer. After successfully growing the school, he transitioned away from teaching martial arts to focus on a career in technology.

In time, Mr. Falenschek co-founded Design Station Technology, a company specializing in automation solutions for the semiconductor industry. Under his leadership, the company became a global leader in clean tunnels and mini-environments, affording him the opportunity to work and travel internationally. Upon retiring from both the industry and martial arts—having attained the rank of sixth-degree black belt—he pursued a long-held aspiration: earning a college degree. Shifting away from technology and toward his passion for storytelling, he enrolled in the Bachelor of Arts in Writing program at the University of Wisconsin-Superior.

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