Inspiring Conversations with Francis Serrano of FMASCHOOL

Today we’d like to introduce you to Francis Serrano.

Hi Francis, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
Born in the Philippines and migrated in 1987, my parents were chasing the American Dream, the dream to give me all the opportunities that the world has to offered. Although I started a little later than I wanted, Filipino Martial Arts became a huge part of my life. Never would I have thought that I would ever be in a position to be a leader in the FMA industry, and I take that responsibility seriously as now it is my job to share this part of the Filipino Culture to as many people as possible.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It wasn’t a smooth road, I wanted to start martial arts when I was a lot younger, but unfortunately my father objected. But undeterred my father saw that I really wanted to do this. So he promised that when I turned 18, he would give me his support. Unfortunately he passed away when I was only 16, and even though I could have started my martial arts journey, I decided to honor my father’s wishes and wait till I was 18. But I knew I did not want to wait longer than I had to. So I started doing research as to which style I wanted to learn. And a friend (also named Francis) told me about Filipino Martial Arts, and that’s when I started doing research. Now keep in mind these were before google, chatgpt or youtube. The only place for me to do research was the Public Library. The more researched I did, the more I knew this was going to be the art I wanted to learn. But finding an instructor was extremely difficult. But a year after I gave up, God had brought me to two old friends who were dating at the time but are married now, to their teacher. And the rest was history.

We’ve been impressed with FMASCHOOL, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
FMASCHOOL is really about sharing Filipino Martial Arts and building a community around it.

We specialize in Eskrima, Kali, Arnis, weapons training, empty hands, self-defense, and competition training. But more than anything, we want people to feel comfortable walking through our doors whether they’ve been training for years or they’ve never picked up a stick before.

What makes us different is that Filipino Martial Arts isn’t just one of the programs we offer — it’s what we do. It’s our passion, our culture, and something we genuinely love sharing with people.

I’m very proud of the champions we’ve developed and the success our students have had in competition, but what I’m even more proud of is the family we’ve built. We train hard, laugh a lot, support each other, travel together, celebrate each other’s wins, and help each other grow.

One of my favorite things is seeing someone come in nervous on their first day, then a few months later they’re more confident, making friends, competing, helping newer students, and really becoming part of the FMASCHOOL family.

We also want to help introduce Filipino Martial Arts to more people. Through the school, tournaments, seminars, and social media, we try to show that FMA is exciting, practical, challenging, and something Filipinos and non-Filipinos alike can appreciate.

At the end of the day, you don’t have to be a fighter or a champion to train with us. You just have to be willing to learn, have fun, and be part of the family.

That’s FMASCHOOL.

If we knew you growing up, how would we have described you?
I was always kind of the guy that made people laugh. Always ready to entertain, but was very deeply connected to the people around me. My mom would tell this story about at 6 years old, I would be the one comforting my classmates when they were scared. And even at a. young age, I noticed that people gravitated towards me, as they felt comfortable and at ease. Yet accepted my leadership qualities.

Pricing:

• Only School that has any world champions
• Strong Focus on Culture and Modern Self Defense Training
• Perfect for people at Any Age
• No Body Shaming
• Anybody can do it.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.FMASCHOOL.com
• Instagram: fmaschool
• Facebook: https://facebook.com/fmaschool
• Twitter: fmaschool
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/fmaschool
• Other: tiktok @bigboyeskrimador