John Holschen

About John Holschen

John Holschen (1958-2025) was a career U.S. Army Special Forces soldier whose more than two decades in special operations and intelligence assignments shaped one of the most practical training philosophies in the armed-citizen community. His Special Forces roles included weapons sergeant, medic, senior hand-to-hand combat instructor and instructor at the John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center. After leaving the Army he worked overseas in protective security, intelligence and training for government agencies and contractors, then became closely associated with Greg Hamilton and InSights Training Center in Washington State, where he taught classes such as the three-day Intensive Handgun Skills course at West Coast Armory in Bellevue.

Holschen was known for blending firearms, unarmed combatives, edged weapons and medical skills into one problem-solving curriculum, and in later years for training students to recognize when a threat has ended and stop shooting. He and Hamilton were the only two-time winners of the National Tactical Invitational, and both were recognized as Master Tacticians and Master Trainers by the American Tactical Shooting Association. Fellow instructors noted his annual presence at the Rangemaster Tactical Conference for more than a decade. He died in September 2025.

Key Facts

• 1958: Born
• 2004: Taught a class at the National Tactical Invitational shortly after returning from Iraq
• 2011: His InSights Intensive Handgun Skills class was profiled by Shooting Illustrated
• September 2025: Died; tributes published by fellow trainers including Active Response Training and Massad Ayoob

Learn More

• Greg Hamilton

Sources

• John Holschen, RIP (Active Response Training)
• John Holschen Profile (Primary and Secondary)
• InSights Training Center: Intensive Handgun Skills (Shooting Illustrated)

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