Frank Schalk, born March 5, 1935, died Aug. 27, 2003, after a
long battle with cancer with his wife and loving family at his
side.
Frank Schalk, born March 5, 1935, died Aug. 27, 2003, after a long battle with cancer with his wife and loving family at his side.
Although relatively short, Schalk lived a truly unique and interesting life. As a child, Schalk was a gifted musician and played guitar and banjo in a country western band with his four older brothers. Upon graduation as co-valedictorian of his high school, Schalk joined the Air Force to earn money for college. While in the Air Force he became a Russian language specialist and was stationed in Germany during the Cold War.
After returning to the states, Schalk began his college engineering studies but was lured away by an amazing job opportunity as a research technician, which had him traveling to La Paz Bolivia where he soon met his wife, Maria Nel.
Schalk spent the next five years in Bolivia with his new wife and saw the birth of his first two sons, Rudy and Christian. Schalk soon received a new assignment in the North Pole. After his six-month assignment, he returned to Bolivia and then moved with his family to Oklahoma and finished his Bachelor’s of Science in Physics and Mathematics.
Schalk then went to work for Western Electric and was part of a team that invented a robotic wire harness-manfacturing machine.
Schalk’s third son, Schalklin Jr., was born in Oklahoma at this time. Schalk’s experience with software and robotics brought him to Silicon Valley in the 70’s where he continued his career at Xynetics and later Lockheed Martin Aerospace.
Schalk was a generous, kind and gifted individual with a passion for languages, cultures and music. He was also talented with his hands and loved working on numerous home projects.
He is survived by his wife, Maria Nela; sons Rudy, Christian, Schalklin; daughter-in-law Vidya; and grandsons Adrian and Julian. He also is survived by brothers Robert, Olin and Royce. In addition to his immediate family, Schalk will be missed by his large and extended family and friends from all over the world.
He was preceded in death by his parents and older brother Sydney.
Visitation will be held from 1-3 p.m. today, Sept. 2, Johnson Funeral Home with funeral service to follow at 3 p.m. in the chapel.
Interment will be at Mount Hope Cemetery.
