Dedication Event Planned For Bergner Gym: Greendale Middle School

GREENDALE, WI — The gymnasium at Greendale Middle School got a new name recently in honor of a former teacher. The Greendale Board of Education approved a measure in May that renamed the gym after longtime physical education teacher Richard Bergner.

A dedication ceremony has been scheduled for the renaming on August 14, an announcement from the district said. The ceremony will take place in the middle school gym located at 6800 Schoolway in Greendale. Attendants can RSVP by calling Sue at 414-423-2700.

Bergner passed away in 2008, but he was a teacher in Greendale for 38 years, according to a nomination submitted by Bergner's son, John Bergner. He starting teaching in 1947 and was the original PE teacher at Greendale Intermediate School when it was built, his nomination said.

According to the nomination, Bergner's biggest accomplishments were his students, not the games and championships that he helped win.

One of Bergner's goals that he wrote in his teaching transcripts was to "find the good in each one of his students and be able to guide each one to make then do their best, no matter what it is," according to the nomination.

Bergner was the coach for high school football in Greendale for six years, his nomination said. He coached 8th grade basketball for 20 years — his teams played in 13 championships and 217 total games.

Bergner regularly opened up the gym for training and conditioning by the Greendale Fire Department. In honor of that service, the department has kept a fireman helmet in his honor at the station, the nomination said.