Ronald C. "Ron" Berman

LIVESTREAM SERVICE:

Ronald’s Livestream Service will begin at 4 p.m. CT on Friday, February 27, 2026. Scroll down to the Webcast section and click on “Watch Now.”

MIDDLETON - Ronald C. “Ron” Berman died on Friday, January 23, 2026, at the age of 76 after a long fight against pancreatic cancer. Ron's date of birth, July 7, 1949, reflected well on his affinity for numbers - it is a perfect square (7/7/49 - seven times seven (or seven squared) is 49). Some may have thought this also applied to his personality.

Ron graduated from Evanston Township High School in Evanston, Ill., in 1967 and then attended the University of Illinois-Champaign/Urbana earning a Bachelor of Science degree in Accountancy with highest honors in 1971, followed by a Juris Doctorate degree with honors in 1974, receiving the Order of the Coif.

Ron passed his Certified Public Accounting examination and was awarded a national Sells Award honorable mention, meaning that his score was in the top 40 out of the 25,000 people that took the exam on that test date. Ron then passed bar examinations in both Illinois (1974) and Wisconsin (1976).

There were three parts to Ron's life: Vocation (accounting and law), Avocation (Scouting), and Family. We will start with, as he did, his family. Ron's parents emigrated from Vienna, Austria, (then part of Germany) to the United States just as the U.S. was about to enter World War II. There were lots of stories about antisemitism and how his parents and their siblings survived the war. Regrettably, all his grandparents along with many other relatives were murdered by the Nazis.

Ron married later in life as he was waiting to find the right woman, Kris Topp Lohr - at least, that is what she says. There was a stepson, Dan Lohr, and then Kris bore Ron a son, Joseph James Berman. Ron loved being a father. He would take Joe on Scout outings every month. Teaching the love of learning, to be a leader, and to be self-reliant were what he tried to do, not only for Joe and Dan, but also for the hundreds of Scouts that were part of the Troops that he led. Ron's proudest moments were when Joe received his Eagle Scout Award, Dan's and Joe's graduations from high school and college, Joe's bar mitzvah, and Dan's and Joe's weddings. Ron was also very proud to be the grandfather of Nell Lohr and Patrick Lohr.

In the practice of accounting and law, Ron earned his B.S. with All University Honors (Bronze Tablet) from the University of Illinois-Champaign/Urbana, and his J.D. (Order of the Coif) from the University of Illinois Law School. Ron started out with a national CPA firm, now called Grant Thornton. He was an honorable mention for the Sells Award, earning one of the top 40 scores on the CPA Exam (out of over 25,000). He started working the day after a new law was signed, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). As the newest employee in the national firm, Ron got assigned to help the local office and the national firm handle this significant piece of legislation. Ron's expertise helped him to being named a partner.

Ron then left Grant Thornton to start practicing law. He continued to serve clients regarding their tax and business needs. Ron became a shareholder of Neider & Boucher, S.C. and continued as a shareholder until April 30, 2025. He stayed on being "of counsel" with Neider & Boucher until his death. He received an "AV" rating from Martindale-Hubbell along with being listed in Best Lawyers in America, Super Lawyers of Wisconsin, Top Lawyers of Madison, Who's Who in America, and Who's Who in American Law.

As a youth, Ron earned the Eagle Scout Award. Ron really enjoyed helping young people to develop their skills of self-confidence and leadership. Being able to understand fear and techniques to handle fear became a focus - a Scout is Brave. He started his life as an adult leader of Scouts while still an undergraduate student at the University of Illinois, becoming a Webelos Cub Scout Den Leader. He then moved on to become a Scoutmaster while attending law school (and teaching tax to undergraduate business majors) at the U of I. The people who initially invited Ron to join Scouting as an adult leader became life-long friends - Paul and Dollie DuMontelle. He stayed in contact with that couple and their entire family for the rest of his life.

Ron was briefly the Scoutmaster of Troop 104 of Urbana, Ill., and then Troop 196 of Schaumburg, Ill., before moving to Middleton. Soon after he moved to Middleton, Ron, along with a close friend, Bob Grady, started Scouts BSA Troop 940. Ron was the Scoutmaster of Troop 940 for over 30 years. He continued involvement with Troop 940 for the rest of his life. He attended summer camp at Camp Phillips for 31 straight years with his Scouts. He also took an occasional canoe trip to Quetico with his Scouts. He helped to encourage and mentor upwards of 70 Scouts to earn their Eagle Scout Award. Ron expanded his Scouting horizon with participation in three World Scout Jamborees and four U.S. National Scout Jamborees. He also became involved in the Glacier's Edge Council (Council Board, Vice-President, etc.), and on the Area 7 and Central Region finance committees. Ron received the Silver Beaver recognition and the District Award of Merit from the Glacier's Edge Council. He was also a long-time member of the Alpha Phi Omega, the Optimist Club of Middleton, and Temple Beth El.

Ron is survived by his wife, Kris; his stepson, Dan Lohr (Molly); his son, Joe (Alissa); his grandchildren, Nell Lohr and Patrick Lohr; his brother, Bob; his nieces, Kristen Berman Berlin (Phil Levin Berlin) and Brittany Berman; and his grand-niece and grand-nephew, Rae Alba Berlin and Kepler Berlin. He is also survived by the DuMontelle children and grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents and Paul and Dollie DuMontelle.

A special thanks to Lynette White and Jody Ciobanu of Agrace Hospice for their assistance in these last months and to the staff at Brookdale for Ron’s excellent care while there.

A celebration of life will be held at GUNDERSON WEST FUNERAL AND CREMATION CARE, 7435 University Ave., Middleton, at 4 p.m. on Friday, February 27, 2026. Family and friends who wish to view the service via LIVESTREAM may visit Ron’s obituary page at www.gundersonfh.com at the time of the service and click on “Watch Now” in the Webcast section. Visitation will be held at the funeral home from 2 p.m. until the time of the service.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made as donor restricted contributions to the Glacier's Edge Scout Trust, Boy Scouts of America, P.O. Box 14135, Madison, WI 53708 or the Middleton Area Historical Society, 7410 Hubbard Ave., Middleton, WI 53562 who, hopefully, will be keeping some of my personal and scouting memorabilia for all to see.

"And now, may the great Scoutmaster of all Scouts be with us until we meet again."

Online condolences may be made at www.gundersonfh.com.

Gunderson West
Funeral & Cremation Care
7435 University Ave.
(608) 831-6761