Frederick "Fred" Walter Berger

Frederick W. Berger

He was preceded in death by his beloved wife Shirley and is survived by his loving children Debbie (Dave) Frydach, Danny (Karen) Berger, Donna (Al) Mikulovsky, Deena (John) Camden, Deanna (Jeff) Merryfield and Derek (Gina) Berger. Fred is further survived by other relatives and friends.

Dad passed away peacefully at home early Thursday morning, July 31st. All six of his children were with him on Wednesday evening. He was aware of their presence, acknowledged them, and had the chance to say goodnight—what none of us knew would be for the final time.

Almost exactly one year ago, we transitioned Dad into home hospice care as his health had declined rapidly and significantly. In the months leading up to that moment, his goal was to make it to his 90th birthday on August 31, 2024. Remarkably, it wasn’t his time—he rallied, and we were blessed to celebrate his milestone birthday together, complete with family, a couple of High Life beers, and his signature mimosa (or as he called it, a 'mooso'). We were fortunate and blessed to get another 11 months with dad after that point. He battled congestive heart failure, various types of cancer and multiple infections throughout this time but never complained even when he was in pain. Did he have opinions and preferences, you betcha, but was never one to make a fuss.

A few hours before passing, he said that he wanted to go home and was literally trying to get out of bed. After fighting a long, hard battle, God finally welcomed him home, along with mom (Shirley) and countless family and friends that have gone before him. While we all know the homecoming was joyous and celebratory, there is no doubt that mom said, “What took you so long, we’ve been waiting for you!”

After mom passed three and a half years ago, dad stayed in their home for a little over a year until multiple health issues and hospitalizations occurred. On December 31st, 2022, Donna and Al moved dad in for “a few weeks” so he could recover and regain strength. Turns out that become his home for the remainder of his time on this earth. We are forever grateful to Donna and Al for opening their home to Dad, caring for him day in and day out, and making countless sacrifices over the past three years, especially in these final months when he could no longer be left alone. Many of us cannot imagine the challenges that come with being someone’s caretaker while working full time, renovating your kitchen and trying to maintain some sense of normalcy, but they navigated all of that because they wanted dad to feel safe and comfortable. The words “thank you” don’t even come close to expressing our appreciation to the two of them for what they did for dad!

We’d also like to extend our gratitude to Aurora Hospice and the many nurses that helped take care of dad throughout the last year. A heartfelt thank you to Marie for the gentle, caring way she interacted with Dad. He looked forward to your visits and you became an honorary member of the Mikulovsky household family.

Dad was a simple man of few words (unless you were really in trouble) who enjoyed being with his family, a cold beer and grocery shopping. He knew where to find the best sales and which stores had the lowest prices. He also apparently really enjoyed driving people around, evidenced by the number of times he drove all of us (and our friends) to and from places, as well as the countless hours he spent in the car with mom. No matter the circumstances or time of day, we could always count on dad to be there when we needed him.

We know you’re in a better place and finally reunited with mom, but that doesn’t make losing you any easier. We thank you; we love you and we already miss you. Make sure you and mom keep sending us signs so that we know you’re with us!

Visitation will be held for Fred on Thursday, August 14, 2025, from 9:30am until time of the Mass of Christian Burial at 11:30am, all at St. Bernadette Catholic Church, 8200 West Denver Avenue, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53223. Interment with military honors to follow at Holy Cross Cemetery in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

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