IOWA
Mike Berger ’74
Travel agent
Horn player, Sioux City Symphony Orchestra

From the Eiffel Tower to King Tut’s tomb, Mike Berger (D.M.A. ’74) can help you plan the vacation of your dreams.

But that’s just his day job.

Berger is also an accomplished horn player and a member of the Sioux City Symphony Orchestra.

He ended up at UMKC after a fellow musician recommended he study under Frank Franano, who was instrumental in founding the Kansas City Symphony. Berger says Franano improved his skills, but more importantly, taught him how to be a professional musician.

“He taught me to respect your colleagues and respect the audience,” he says. “That helped me tremendously. It made a total difference when I got into the travel industry.”

After graduate school, Berger became a travel agent in Sioux City, Iowa. In travel, he found a passion that rivaled his love of music.

“If you’re going to sell something, you probably ought to be selling something you like,” he says. “Travel, it’s easy. I have a passion for it. I believe in it.”

Berger says he believes travel is “psychologically important,” whether visiting the Lake of the Ozarks or taking a tour across Europe.

In reflecting on his favorite places to visit, Berger recounted one particularly memorable trip he and his wife took across Russia.

“We did a river cruise from Moscow to St. Petersburg. It was a wonderful, wonderful trip,” he says. “That was during June, so the longest days. You get way up north and the sun goes down at midnight and comes up at 3 a.m.”

Berger has visited more than 30 countries, but if you’re looking for someone who will tell you where to go, he’s not your guy.

“A lot of people get that backwards,” he says. “They think the travel agent will know where they should go, but it depends on what you want.”

Berger says he has fond memories of his years at UMKC. He would like to retire in Kansas City someday, but for now, he has a pretty sweet deal.