In Memoriam: Fran Berger
MIAMI, Fla. — Fran Berger — long-time director of debate at Miami Palmetto High School and member of the National Forensic League Hall of Fame — has passed away.
Berger created one the original Lincoln-Douglas debate dynasty programs as the coach of Miami Palmetto. She coached three students to the final round of the Tournament of Champions — two won the title — and also coached two top speakers at the TOC. A four-diamond coach in the National Forensic League, Berger coached multiple debaters to finals of many of the most prestigious tournaments at the time, including Emory, St. Mark’s, the Bronx Round Robin, the Glenbrook Round Robin, the MBA Round Robin, and Nationals. She was a respected and beloved leader and a real icon in this community.
The Miami Herald’s obituary for Berger is now online; the obituary also has a link to a guest book.
Fourteen of her former students submitted the following joint letter for publication in the Miami Herald:
This week South Florida lost a largely unknown but unforgettable hero. Her name was Francine Berger, but to the many students whose lives she touched, she was simply “Coach.” For three decades, Mrs. Berger served as the Speech and Debate Coach at Miami Palmetto Senior High School, where her students won numerous team and individual national debating championships. She was colorful and controversial, mercurial and madcap — but, above all, Mrs. Berger was dedicated to her students more than perhaps any teacher we have ever known. She constantly traveled across the country to attend her students’ debate competitions; she insisted that the whole squad fundraise to support those members who otherwise could not afford travel costs; and she spent early mornings and late nights dispensing advice and stories aboard countless Greyhound buses, airplanes, and the occasional desktop. Her legacy, apart from from her beloved family, is the legion of successful minds she helped shape. That fraternity includes Ivy League professors, business executives, Supreme Court clerks, physicians, government officials, teachers, attorneys, dedicated parents, and many other success stories. For we, her former students, there are few associations in our lives that evoke greater fondness and pride than the label of “Palmetto Debater.” Much of the credit belongs to Mrs. Berger, and for so many of us, she will never be forgotten.
–Richard Rosenthal (Miami, FL)
–Stephen Rosenthal (Miami, FL)
–Adam Levin (Washington, DC)
–Ketanji Brown Jackson (Washington, DC)
–Nathaniel Persily (New York, NY)
–Meredith Persily Lamel (Washington, DC)
–Gerald Greenberg (Miami, FL)
–Todd Lebowitz (Cleveland, OH)
–Jarrett Wolf (Miami, FL)
–Michael Samway (Miami, FL)
–David Buckner (Miami, FL)
–Craig Tinsky (Washington, DC)
–Jonathan Minsker (New York, NY)
–William Schild (Miami, FL)
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Posted from: 96.226.36.179
August 5th, 2008 22:52
Fran Berger was an inspiration and a bright spot in many coaches careers. She was never afraid to be completely herself. She was an amazing person. She gave me GREAT encouragement as a young coach on the circuit and I will hold her memory dear.
Posted from: 128.12.36.55
August 6th, 2008 01:02
I hate that Ms. Berger will never grace a tournament with her presence again. In the last few years, these surprises were rare but they certainly are a shining reminder of everything that Ms. Berger stood for.
A quintessential character, she was the best part of my high school experience. Being judged by Ms. Berger was an event, not just interesting because of how absurdly intelligent she was but incredibly entertaining because of the random comments she would make like “where are my Mentos?” More than any other coach in the nation, Ms. Berger made me laugh…out loud…everytime I was around her. Perhaps there’s something in the water at Palmetto that brings a unique perspective on the activity. And obviously, losing two of these great Palmetto personalities in such a short time is nothing short of criminal.
Fran Berger has always been a personal inspiration for me because as a coaches and judges we can always strive to remind students that even in the most seemingly serious, competitive situations, we can still have fun.
Posted from: 209.12.83.8
August 6th, 2008 09:18
I am saddened to hear about the loss of Fran Berger. There were 3 distinct memories of her that came to mind yesterday when Jim Miller called to tell me about her death.
My first experience with Mrs. Berger was in 1987 at the Barkley Forum for High Schools at Emory University. I found myself in semifinals of Dramatic Interpretation in a room where the heat was unbearable. I chose to take off my coat to perform. After the round, Mrs. Berger came up to me and said, “You were very good and I thought about giving you the 1, but you took off your coat and this is the Barkley Forum, so I gave you a 6 - why did you take off your coat?” To this day, my male students wear their coats at the Barkley Forum!
My second memory is the fact that regardless of where in the country she had her teams competing, Mrs. Berger never judged on Saturday morning, not because of the sabbath, but because she had a nail appointment that could not be missed! She would find a place to have her nails done in Chicago, Lexington, Winston-Salem, Atlanta!
My third memory of Fran came as a coach, again, at the Barkley Forum in 1995. It so happened that I walked in with several other Alabama debate coaches, including Marilee Dukes, Pat Bailey, and Gloria Robison, all of whom had coached national champions in L/D. Fran greeted us in the lobby of the hotel with, “Oh look, it’s the Alabama L/D Mafia.”
At the Barkley Forum this year, she and her husband were in attendance and we were able to catch up. She was a vocal University of Alabama football fan and was looking forward to coming to NFL Nationals in 2009 - she wanted to help and I was thrilled by her offer. She will be missed - there is no other Fran Berger! Roll Tide!
Posted from: 96.226.36.179
August 6th, 2008 09:30
I was thinking about Fran last night and remembered one of my favorite stories of her. In 1996 at MBA a big snow storm came in. This was extremely unusual. After rounds were over, while most of us were dreading the drive home — FRAN has her own idea. She rented a limo for her debaters to get back to the hotel. When asked why, she said - “Are you crazy? It doesn’t snow in Florida.” To this day - all I can say is - that was so Fran.
I sat with her at the Barkley Forum Key Dinner this year and truly enjoyed every minute. She made us all laugh and remember when we saw her every tournament.
I cherish the times I had with Fran and will work to live up to her faith in me and to her legacy as a coach.
Posted from: 205.202.204.222
August 7th, 2008 08:02
Sorry to hear about Fran, especially since she was looking forward to being at Nationals this year in Birmingham.
I can never think of any time I spent with Fran when I didn’t end up laughing and smiling. She was an excellent coach, a great person, and someone who I will always remember as one of the most amazing characters I have ever run into while coaching debate.
Fred Robertson
Posted from: 74.73.177.96
August 7th, 2008 16:31
I did not have the pleasure of getting to know Fran Berger as a coach but I do know that there is a quiet but definite community of Miami Palmetto debaters who read VBD. These past few weeks, I’ve been interviewing a number of these debaters — and other debaters, including some of her top competitors from the 1980s — to compile a history about one of LD debate’s first powerhouses. The common thread in all of my exchanges with these debaters is their exceptionally high praise and respect for Fran Berger and their deep appreciation for the effect she had on their lives. When the time is right, I’ll continue my work on that, because hers is a legacy that should and will always be remembered.
Less experienced coaches can only hope to have the same effect on their own students.