Runners With Style Support Tufts Engineers Without Borders

Anyone who knew Fred Berger, A69, knew two things about him: he was staunchly dedicated to improving the world through engineering, and he always wore a bow tie. In pursuit of his goal to raise the quality of life for people around the world, he helped establish the Tufts chapter of Engineers Without Borders (EWB) in 2004. His impact is still felt on the Tufts campus today, as students in Engineers Without Borders continue to benefit from his family’s generosity.

Each year, the club hosts the Annual Fred Berger 6K to honor his legacy. Just like Berger, many participants in the 6K event wear bow ties to pay homage to his seminal role in founding Tufts EWB and to his family’s support of the club over the years.

Instead of a traditional 5K, participants in the event walk or run 6 kilometers, the average distance that women and children in sub-Saharan Africa must walk to access water. All proceeds from the event support Tufts Engineers Without Borders’ clean water projects, helping bring sustainable water solutions to communities in need.

This year, the Brannan-Berger family came out in full force to participate in the run. Fred’s wife Elizabeth 'Betty' Brannan-Berger, J69, and 23 family members and friends attended the event including Betty and Fred’s three children, Sofia, Nathan, and Susanna, and their grandson, Frederico Berger Jr.

Before the race, a lineup of speakers honored Berger and shared the history of the club. Each reflected on a different aspect of Berger’s life. Sherman Teichman, former director of the Institute for Global Leadership, which helped establish Tufts EWB, and Sarah Freeman, E05, EG08, a founding member of Tufts EWB, spoke about the early days of the organization. Betty and Sofia shared more personal stories about Fred’s life and expressed appreciation for the club’s activities over the years.

“My dad never got to see how the importance he placed on real-world engagement by engineers translated into a long-lasting program that continues to thrive and provide opportunities at Tufts, but to see how his memory is preserved and his example cherished by students who never even got to meet him was moving beyond words,” Nathan Berger said. 

At the start signal, dozens of bowtie-clad participants set off on the course while Betty and other supporters cheered them on.

The Berger-Brannan family are Jumbos through and through. Both Fred’s father (Louis Berger, E36, H65, A69P) and Betty’s father (Francis Brannan, E38, J69P) are Tufts alumni. Although Louis and Francis did not know each during their undergraduate studies, they became good friends decades later when Fred and Betty met and fell in love during their time at Tufts. Fred Berger graduated from Tufts with a bachelor’s degree in economics in 1969 and served on the Tufts Board of Trustees from 1969 to 1984. His involvement in helping found Tufts EWB kept him connected to the Tufts community for many decades.

Over the years the Tufts EWB chapter has contributed to clean water efforts in Tibet, Haiti, Ecuador, El Salvador, Uganda, Nicaragua, and Malawi. Through building long-lasting and meaningful relationships with the communities they work with, Tufts EWB members develop and implement sustainable water supply, treatment, and distribution systems. Today, the club is one of the most popular undergraduate student organizations in the School of Engineering. More than two decades after Fred Berger helped establish Tufts EWB, the annual 6K remains a reminder of the community he built and the work that continues in his name. 

“For my son, the new Freddy Berger, to grow up with such a beautiful demonstration of the way his grandfather (whom he, also, never got to meet) viewed the world and our ability and responsibility to make it better is truly special,” Nathan Berger shared. 

Support Tufts Engineers Without Borders.