Why Did I Become a Teacher: A Tribute to Mr. Bergmann - Friday, September 25, 2020

The question in the subject line is one we may have asked ourselves (in some instances repeatedly😊) over the last few weeks.  For most of us it probably had something to do with wanting to make a difference in a student’s life, or to give back because someone helped us along the way.  I would guess that for most of us, there was also probably that one really special teacher who you connected with more than others, and they may have, unintentionally, led you to think, “I want to do that”.  For me, it was Mr. Bergmann.  He was my business teacher (the only business teacher) in the small western Kansas high school I attended.  He was amazing.  So funny.  So crazy.  Always doing goofy things to make us laugh.  But also so cool.  He was in a 60s rock band while in college, and at the end of each semester he would bring his guitar and amp to school and just rock out!  He also just happened to really know his stuff in the classroom too, but that almost seemed like a sidenote because of just how awesome he was.  He never pushed me to be a business teacher, but he is the reason I am one.

He taught at my high school for 34 years.  He taught my mom, dad, aunts, uncles, cousins, siblings, etc.  He was my favorite, but a large majority of the students who went through there probably thought the same thing.  And he made everyone he met feel like they were HIS favorite (I liked to think I was REALLY his favorite because, believe it or not, his son and I shared a birthday).  He was also the golf coach, and while I played before I got to high school, he truly taught me how to play the game.  And while I don’t get to play as often as I used to, I am so grateful for the love of the game he instilled in me.  He ALSO built and repaired golf clubs, and until I was 34 years old, every club I ever swung was made by him.  He obviously had a rather large impact on my life and the life of many in my family and entire hometown.

Mr. Bergmann and I  on my last day of high school.

Mr. Bergmann has been on my mind a lot this week, because we lost him on Saturday.  Yesterday during 7^th hour I told my Accounting students about him, and how I am teaching them Accounting because he taught it to me.  I drove back to Jetmore yesterday after school to attend his rosary.  The funeral today is family only, but if not for COVID, the gymnasium would be filled to the brim.  I of course didn’t get to see him much over the last few years, but I will miss him nonetheless.  We all probably have a Mr. Bergmann in our lives, and believe it or not, we are probably Mr. Bergmann to at least one of our students right now.  It’s easy to forget that during all this craziness, and it’s certainly more difficult to form those types of relationships with our students, but continue to try.  Because there are many of them that still need us to be there for them.  Just like Mr. Bergmann always was for me.

Update - This was written in September of 2020, in the height of Covid, when us teachers were adjusting to a completely new style of teaching, not to mention restrictions on how we could interact with students and each other.  Since it was written, I learned two more things that link Mr. Bergmann and I: 1) We both married women born on March 5; and 2) In 2022 I became a golf coach also, at East High School in Wichita.  When I was at practice or at a tournament, it was rare that I didn't think of him.