FALB, Mark

Image courtesy: Telegraph Herald

FALB, Mark. (Postville, IA, August 11, 1947-- Dubuque, IA, September 20, 2026). A graduate of the University of Iowa in 1969, Falb was employed with MCGLADREY, HENDRICKSON AND PULLEN prior to him joining WCB GROUP in October 1973. An accountant, he worked his way up at the textbook publisher founded by his father-in-law, William C. BROWN. In 1992, when the company was known as WCB Communications, Falb negotiated the sale of a division of the company to Times Mirror. The stipulation was that the buyer had to remain committed to Dubuque. Falb remained head of Kendall Hunt Publishing Co., a stand-alone company since 1994 and the only division of the original William C. Brown Publishing Co. still under Brown family ownership. (1)

He also served as the president and chief executive officer of Westmark Enterprises, Inc., a real estate investment company, from November 1992 to November 1993, before becoming chairman and chief executive officer. Despite substantial offers to relocate to other states, Falb maintained his company's ties to Dubuque. (2)

Active in the community, Falb established a permanent Publisher's Collection at the UNIVERSITY OF DUBUQUE containing four hundred of the leading books published by WILLIAM C. BROWN PUBLISHERS from 1962 to 1982. (3) He served as a director of Citizens Finance Company, DUBUQUE BANK AND TRUST COMPANY, JUNIOR ACHIEVEMENT OF THE HEARTLAND, Dubuque Bank and Trust Insurance, and Dubuque Bank and Trust Community Development Corporation; director/vice chair of Heartland Financial USA; lifetime member of the board of trustees for the UNIVERSITY OF DUBUQUE beginning in 2015; vice-president of the Grand Opera House Foundation beginning in 2006; and president of the University of Iowa Scholarship Fund. He was past president and chairman of the DUBUQUE GOLF AND COUNTRY CLUB; member of the DUBUQUE SHOOTING SOCIETY, Dubuque Cultural Preservation Committee; and board member of the DUBUQUE AREA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, Boys and Girls Club of Dubuque, and FINLEY HOSPITAL (THE). (4)

Falb's appreciation of music came from his mother, Honorine, a classically trained opera singer who turned down an opportunity to sing for a national operatic radio program on the East Coast. Shew married Mark's father, John, who owned and operated several car dealerships in Iowa. (4) An accomplished trumpet player, Mark established and played trumpet in the Dubuque Brass, a local group that by 2014 had entertained audiences for nearly two decades. He supported many music and theater programs including the DUBUQUE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA and COLTS DRUM AND BUGLE CORPS. Falb also sponsored concerts at the FIVE FLAGS CIVIC CENTER to introduce orchestral music and instruments to young children. (5)

Philanthropic activities undertaken by Falb included his $235,000 purchase of an old grocery store and land on South Grandview and Rockdale Road. The store was removed and the land, which he donated to the City of Dubuque, became a neighborhood park. He has offered financial support for those in need and with his wife, Cheryl, counseled people facing trying conditions. (6)

On January 1, 2014, Falb joined the list of illustrious Dubuque residents to be a recipient of the FIRST CITIZEN AWARD.

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Source:

1. Murphy, Erin. "Mark Falb's Feats Worth Trumpeting," Telegraph Herald, January 1, 2014, p. 1

2. Peterson, Walter J. A History of the Wm. C. Brown Companies, Dubuque: William C. Brown Communications, Inc. 1994, p. 274

3. Murphy, Erin

4. Ibid.

5. Ibid.