MONROE - According to Hans Bernet, his country of origin tag would read "Made in Switzerland but assembled in the USA." That tagline seems fitting for a guy whose mother was pregnant with him on her way here from Switzerland.
He was a kid who hated being forced to speak Swiss in the house - but today realizes that the gift he was given by doing just that has shaped his life in so many ways. The language, headstart toward learning about other cultures and hankering for his past have paved the road to the rewards that Bernet still reaps regularly alongside his wife, his family and his dear friends.
Bernet was born at St. Clare Hospital in Monroe, and his father ran a cheese factory north of town where the family lived. His parents insisted the children all speak Swiss, a requirement Bernet hated, and he only spoke English at his grade school.
"I'm so thankful for that now," he said, noting that he's one of the last generations of Swiss people in Monroe who still speaks the language. "It's made such a difference in my life."
He attended a one-room school house in Dutch Hollow for a short time in first grade before his father moved to Monticello where a cousin owned a mink farm. But in the middle of third grade, his father moved the family back to Monroe where they ran a cheese and sausage store for more than 25 years in the back of what's now the Suisse Haus.
Bernet said he was an active student who enjoyed school when he was interested in the subject. He played a little tennis and mowed lawns for some extra money, but one of his biggest interests was singing. He said that passion likely comes from his mother, an entertainer who sang and yodeled.
"I always loved music," Bernet said. "But never took lessons on an instrument." In high school he did play a little guitar with a friend during the folk craze, even starting a band as a way to get out of study hall until they realized how serious the chorus teacher was. The Monroe Folk Art Society group attracted some strong musicians and were expected to practice and learn - that teacher made it important and exposed the students to all kinds of classical music.
After his Monroe High School graduation in 1966, Bernet said his vague plan included going to college with some friends, and he attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison hesitantly. But once he got there, he loved it.
German wasn't offered at MHS when Bernet attended and at the university, things moved quickly in the foreign language class - but because of his strong Swiss background, he easily kept up and enjoyed the challenge. After two years of German, he signed up for the junior year abroad program and spent his junior year of college in Freiburg, Germany. It was his first time on an airplane, but he felt connected to travel because of the stories he'd heard from his parents. The experience ended up being a pivotal time in his life.
"The world opened up to me," Bernet said. "My German got really good - I traveled around Europe and it was mind blowing."
It was the late 1960s, and Bernet said that it was one incredible experience after the other. He enjoyed the traveling and went to Switzerland and stayed with his aunt for a while - feeling like everyone who spoke Swiss felt like family.
He graduated from UW-Madison in 1970 with a degree in European History, and at that time it was one of the finest programs in the country.
His plan was to become a social studies teacher but after a six-month internship, Bernet realized quickly that teaching students what they might not be interested in or capable of understanding wasn't what he wanted to do.
"I liked history too much to force it down people's throats," Bernet said.
So, he went back to school instead, earning a master's degree in history and headed back to Europe for research. He was eventually hired to teach in Nuremburg, Germany. After a year, Bernet loved it because the people there definitely wanted to be learning. He picked up side jobs with the American military and police doing translating and teaching. He was about to sign a contract to become a permanent teacher in a German college-bound high school in Nuremburg. However, that plan never materialized after a summer trip home where he ran into his future wife, Bobbie Benkert, who had just returned from two years with the Peace Corps. The two who had dated on and off in high school re-connected with their travel stories.
The couple planned to move to Sheboygan and decided to get married on a whim - to the gratification of Bobbie's father, they eloped. After three years of teaching at Sheboygan South High School, the couple decided their hometown was calling.
"The one thing we could count on was not ending up back in Monroe," Bernet said of the couple's outlook at that time. "But after seeing the world, Monroe didn't look so bad - especially for raising a family."
Bernet had hoped to get the teaching job at the high school, but they were looking for someone to teach both German and French at the time. Bernet, who had worked summers at Bruni-Miller construction, went back to work there until Swiss Colony recruited him to customer service for some temporary work. Soon, he was writing copy for the catalog and later he got into the photography side of things. Each week he was traveling into Chicago and after his son, Alex, was born, he decided to move within the Swiss Colony again.
Bernet became close with Bob and Jean Rosa, who were florists and owned Star Flower Shop. They had a student of Frank Lloyd Wright's design their flower shop and home - through them, Bernet got connected with Wright's head draftsman, who designed their home. It was important that they have a home that meant something, and slowly, Bernet finished most of the inside of the home himself.
"Your home affects the way you think and look at the world," Bernet said. Today, they are still big fans of Wright's work and have traveled extensively to see his architecture.
Their daughter, Kate, was born as Bernet slowly finished the home and he still worked at Swiss Colony, enjoying the changes that came, and eventually was a merchandiser for the cheese and sausage sections of the catalog. During his tenure, Bernet joked he was a jack of all trades and a master of none because he held so many positions.
In the late 1980s, he moved within the Colony once again, this time working with a catalog from Germany. He enjoyed the work where he used his background once again and was able to travel to Germany often for work - he was the perfect liaison to translate and speak German and the main offices for the catalog were where he had taught years before. He would even take an extra week when traveling for work to stop and see relatives in Switzerland.
Later, Bernet would move to specialized projects. One big one was the transition to internet orders, and he would spend the last 15 years of his career leading the way to web sales.
In 2007, Bernet learned his health was in jeopardy. During a yearly physical, it was discovered his spleen was enlarged and after a biopsy, he was diagnosed with a rare form of lymphoma and given a prognosis of about three years. After opting for a clinical trial in Madison, going through six rounds of chemotherapy, then a four-and-a-half-year maintenance program, he's nearly a decade past that diagnosis.
In 2010, he retired and has found ways to enjoy life.
"We do everything we can to enjoy life," Bernet said. "We're cramming it in."
The places they've been are too far to name, but they don't just go to sightsee - the Bernets spend time with locals and see friends, family and acquaintances to truly experience what the places have to offer.
"Travel changes your life," Bernet said. "You almost always gain enough that it will help you in your later life."
He bikes sometimes 40 miles at a time. A four-day bike trip is on the horizon and a visit with their children is almost always underway - with Alex living in Colorado and Kate in California. Bernet said he might just talk them into coming back one day, too.
It was 35 years ago when Bernet headed up the Bel Canto Singers group - he and Bobbie had moved back to Monroe and wanted a way to get together and sing with friends and their piano, and they paved the path to a group that has been together since.
"You get together and the sum is greater than the parts," Bernet said. "Emotions come when you're singing with a group. You almost feel like part of a larger organism."
He's been on the Monroe Arts Center board for several years and served as president for a time. He served on the Monroe school board starting in the early 1990s for 12 years, feeling proud that near the end of his term a referendum was passed to add or refurbish each school in the district. He's led tours to Switzerland several times through Turner Hall and served on its board as well.
Bernet said it was Bobbie, who is less Swiss than he, who dragged him to Swiss Singers, and it's another group he enjoys. He has been a part of the Fit for Life class for more than 35 years and takes part in the Almost Famous Dancing Cheesemakers group that performs at each Cheese Days.
Most recently, Bernet is proud of leading a group of performers from Switzerland to attend the 2016 Cheese Days celebration and experience Monroe and the surrounding area. The celebration won't be forgotten, and the people are looking forward to reconnecting after Bernet partnered a city in Switzerland with Monroe and 27 dancers came from Langnau to experience the connections between the two places.
He and Bobbie are also part of the Presbyterian Church choir.
"Although our decision to return to Monroe in 1978 was made with some trepidation, we now know it was the best thing we could have done," Bernet said. "Monroe has been a great place to raise our children. The new friends we have made and the old friendships we have renewed here confirm that decision daily."
He was a kid who hated being forced to speak Swiss in the house - but today realizes that the gift he was given by doing just that has shaped his life in so many ways. The language, headstart toward learning about other cultures and hankering for his past have paved the road to the rewards that Bernet still reaps regularly alongside his wife, his family and his dear friends.
Bernet was born at St. Clare Hospital in Monroe, and his father ran a cheese factory north of town where the family lived. His parents insisted the children all speak Swiss, a requirement Bernet hated, and he only spoke English at his grade school.
"I'm so thankful for that now," he said, noting that he's one of the last generations of Swiss people in Monroe who still speaks the language. "It's made such a difference in my life."
He attended a one-room school house in Dutch Hollow for a short time in first grade before his father moved to Monticello where a cousin owned a mink farm. But in the middle of third grade, his father moved the family back to Monroe where they ran a cheese and sausage store for more than 25 years in the back of what's now the Suisse Haus.
Bernet said he was an active student who enjoyed school when he was interested in the subject. He played a little tennis and mowed lawns for some extra money, but one of his biggest interests was singing. He said that passion likely comes from his mother, an entertainer who sang and yodeled.
"I always loved music," Bernet said. "But never took lessons on an instrument." In high school he did play a little guitar with a friend during the folk craze, even starting a band as a way to get out of study hall until they realized how serious the chorus teacher was. The Monroe Folk Art Society group attracted some strong musicians and were expected to practice and learn - that teacher made it important and exposed the students to all kinds of classical music.
After his Monroe High School graduation in 1966, Bernet said his vague plan included going to college with some friends, and he attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison hesitantly. But once he got there, he loved it.
German wasn't offered at MHS when Bernet attended and at the university, things moved quickly in the foreign language class - but because of his strong Swiss background, he easily kept up and enjoyed the challenge. After two years of German, he signed up for the junior year abroad program and spent his junior year of college in Freiburg, Germany. It was his first time on an airplane, but he felt connected to travel because of the stories he'd heard from his parents. The experience ended up being a pivotal time in his life.
"The world opened up to me," Bernet said. "My German got really good - I traveled around Europe and it was mind blowing."
It was the late 1960s, and Bernet said that it was one incredible experience after the other. He enjoyed the traveling and went to Switzerland and stayed with his aunt for a while - feeling like everyone who spoke Swiss felt like family.
He graduated from UW-Madison in 1970 with a degree in European History, and at that time it was one of the finest programs in the country.
His plan was to become a social studies teacher but after a six-month internship, Bernet realized quickly that teaching students what they might not be interested in or capable of understanding wasn't what he wanted to do.
"I liked history too much to force it down people's throats," Bernet said.
So, he went back to school instead, earning a master's degree in history and headed back to Europe for research. He was eventually hired to teach in Nuremburg, Germany. After a year, Bernet loved it because the people there definitely wanted to be learning. He picked up side jobs with the American military and police doing translating and teaching. He was about to sign a contract to become a permanent teacher in a German college-bound high school in Nuremburg. However, that plan never materialized after a summer trip home where he ran into his future wife, Bobbie Benkert, who had just returned from two years with the Peace Corps. The two who had dated on and off in high school re-connected with their travel stories.
The couple planned to move to Sheboygan and decided to get married on a whim - to the gratification of Bobbie's father, they eloped. After three years of teaching at Sheboygan South High School, the couple decided their hometown was calling.
"The one thing we could count on was not ending up back in Monroe," Bernet said of the couple's outlook at that time. "But after seeing the world, Monroe didn't look so bad - especially for raising a family."
Bernet had hoped to get the teaching job at the high school, but they were looking for someone to teach both German and French at the time. Bernet, who had worked summers at Bruni-Miller construction, went back to work there until Swiss Colony recruited him to customer service for some temporary work. Soon, he was writing copy for the catalog and later he got into the photography side of things. Each week he was traveling into Chicago and after his son, Alex, was born, he decided to move within the Swiss Colony again.
Bernet became close with Bob and Jean Rosa, who were florists and owned Star Flower Shop. They had a student of Frank Lloyd Wright's design their flower shop and home - through them, Bernet got connected with Wright's head draftsman, who designed their home. It was important that they have a home that meant something, and slowly, Bernet finished most of the inside of the home himself.
"Your home affects the way you think and look at the world," Bernet said. Today, they are still big fans of Wright's work and have traveled extensively to see his architecture.
Their daughter, Kate, was born as Bernet slowly finished the home and he still worked at Swiss Colony, enjoying the changes that came, and eventually was a merchandiser for the cheese and sausage sections of the catalog. During his tenure, Bernet joked he was a jack of all trades and a master of none because he held so many positions.
In the late 1980s, he moved within the Colony once again, this time working with a catalog from Germany. He enjoyed the work where he used his background once again and was able to travel to Germany often for work - he was the perfect liaison to translate and speak German and the main offices for the catalog were where he had taught years before. He would even take an extra week when traveling for work to stop and see relatives in Switzerland.
Later, Bernet would move to specialized projects. One big one was the transition to internet orders, and he would spend the last 15 years of his career leading the way to web sales.
In 2007, Bernet learned his health was in jeopardy. During a yearly physical, it was discovered his spleen was enlarged and after a biopsy, he was diagnosed with a rare form of lymphoma and given a prognosis of about three years. After opting for a clinical trial in Madison, going through six rounds of chemotherapy, then a four-and-a-half-year maintenance program, he's nearly a decade past that diagnosis.
In 2010, he retired and has found ways to enjoy life.
"We do everything we can to enjoy life," Bernet said. "We're cramming it in."
The places they've been are too far to name, but they don't just go to sightsee - the Bernets spend time with locals and see friends, family and acquaintances to truly experience what the places have to offer.
"Travel changes your life," Bernet said. "You almost always gain enough that it will help you in your later life."
He bikes sometimes 40 miles at a time. A four-day bike trip is on the horizon and a visit with their children is almost always underway - with Alex living in Colorado and Kate in California. Bernet said he might just talk them into coming back one day, too.
It was 35 years ago when Bernet headed up the Bel Canto Singers group - he and Bobbie had moved back to Monroe and wanted a way to get together and sing with friends and their piano, and they paved the path to a group that has been together since.
"You get together and the sum is greater than the parts," Bernet said. "Emotions come when you're singing with a group. You almost feel like part of a larger organism."
He's been on the Monroe Arts Center board for several years and served as president for a time. He served on the Monroe school board starting in the early 1990s for 12 years, feeling proud that near the end of his term a referendum was passed to add or refurbish each school in the district. He's led tours to Switzerland several times through Turner Hall and served on its board as well.
Bernet said it was Bobbie, who is less Swiss than he, who dragged him to Swiss Singers, and it's another group he enjoys. He has been a part of the Fit for Life class for more than 35 years and takes part in the Almost Famous Dancing Cheesemakers group that performs at each Cheese Days.
Most recently, Bernet is proud of leading a group of performers from Switzerland to attend the 2016 Cheese Days celebration and experience Monroe and the surrounding area. The celebration won't be forgotten, and the people are looking forward to reconnecting after Bernet partnered a city in Switzerland with Monroe and 27 dancers came from Langnau to experience the connections between the two places.
He and Bobbie are also part of the Presbyterian Church choir.
"Although our decision to return to Monroe in 1978 was made with some trepidation, we now know it was the best thing we could have done," Bernet said. "Monroe has been a great place to raise our children. The new friends we have made and the old friendships we have renewed here confirm that decision daily."