PHILADELPHIA – The University of Pennsylvania rowing community unveiled the newly named Burk-Bergman Boathouse on Saturday, Oct. 15, with a ribbon cutting and evening of celebration and honor with over 300 alumni and friends in attendance.
 
The Penn Boathouse is like a second home on campus for our student-athletes and coaches. It is a place where past, current and future student-athletes will spend countless hours refining their skills and will serve as the gateway to the Schuylkill River and City of Philadelphia. The renovated facility showcases the history, tradition, and success that each individual has earned representing Penn while propelling future crews to greater heights.  The new Burk-Bergman Boathouse sets the stage for current and future Penn rowing student-athletes to be on a competitive level nationally and internationally.
 
Burk and Stan Bergman are two legendary coaches whose positive impact on the student-athletes they coached is unmated. Honoring these two Penn Athletics Hall of Famers with the naming of the Burk-Bergman Boathouse was made possible by the generosity of many donors and friends of the Penn Rowing community. Bergman was in attendance for the day, and although Joe Burk passed away in 2008 his son, Roger Burk, attended on his behalf and in his honor.
 
Early returns on the renovation are extremely positive.
 
"While the water is the true training location for any rowing team, the boathouse serves as a crews' home base," said Colin Farrell, who is in his ninth year as the Fred W. Leonard Head Coach of Lightweight Rowing. "It is the face of our program and the entry point for anyone interacting with our teams. From a training perspective, the renovated boathouse provides additional space for indoor workouts, has upgraded locker room facilities, and audio/video capabilities that our previous boathouse never did. So much of a good boathouse is putting the athletes in a position to get on and off the water simply and effectively. The Burk-Bergman Boathouse is a streamlined entry point to training on the Schuylkill River for Penn Rowing.
 
"For recruits, the boathouse showcases Penn's history and pride in our rowing programs. To me, it is a clear message on how well-supported our teams are, how engaged our alumni are, and how important rowing is at Penn. The boathouse gives a great connection from past teams to the present crews now in place. I think that, as recruits are trying to find if Penn is the place for them, seeing their opportunity to come to Penn and make an impact here is a powerful statement."
 
"The new boathouse is the capstone that illustrates how much commitment exists at Penn for excellence amongst our alums, current team, and the University as a whole," said Wesley Ng, in his eighth year as Penn's women's rowing coach. "So much of building a successful team is about how our shared story and the recruit's dreams and ambitions get woven together, and the boathouse is a stunning medium to imagine their future at Penn."
 
"Outside of the tradition and history that is Penn Rowing, the boathouse is place where our teams call home," said Al Monte, who was named the Nicholas B. Paumgarten Head Coach of Men's Heavyweight Rowing just last month. "Our student-athletes now have a space that will provide them with everything they need to be successful on the water. As a new coach coming into the program, I feel incredibly fortunate to inherit a space that is in direct harmony with the dreams and aspirations of rowers past, present, and future and will help to propel our crews toward Ivy and national titles."
 
So what makes the Burk-Bergman Boathouse stand out?
 
"With the original Boathouse built in the late 1800s and multiple additions put on in subsequent years, the Boathouse never had a unified layout and the organization that it does now," said Farrell. "To me, the Grand Hall is an amazing space that we never had previously. We now have a common area where all can gather in the boathouse around practices, races, and all things Penn Rowing."
 
"From the interior, what stands out is the connection of Penn Rowing's storied past to its current opportunities," said Ng. "There are special moments throughout the boathouse that harken to where we have been, and even more energy, you can feel where we are going. From the exterior, I am thrilled that sightlines connect the community to the Schuylkill—we are the only boathouse with a clear line of sight through the boat bays to the water, hopefully inspiring more of our community to want to be a part of rowing in Philadelphia."
 
About Joe Burk and Stan Bergman…
 
Joe Burk, W'34, HON'88 - Heavyweight Rowing Head Coach, 1951-69        
Inducted as an inaugural member of the Penn Athletics Hall of Fame in 1996, Burk was a champion rower and 1939 recipient of the Sullivan Award as the outstanding amateur athlete in the United States, Joe Burk left his mark on the sport of crew as a coach. As a competitor, Burk was the national single sculls champion four years in a row (1937-40) and two-time winner of the Diamond Sculls at England's Henley Regatta (1938-39). He captained the University of Pennsylvania's crew team of 1936. He returned to coach at Pennsylvania in 1951 and remained through 1969. Overall, he coached three crews at Henley with his 1955 squad emerging victorious. His 1968 Varsity Eight won the IRA championship, the first time the Quakers had won the title since 1900. In the Pacific during WWII, Joe commanded PT-320 and won the Navy Cross and Silver and Bronze Stars for heroism in action.
 
Stan Bergman - Heavyweight Rowing Head Coach, 1984-2006
A four-time EARC Coach of the Year, Stan Bergman had an immediate impact as head coach, leading the Quakers to their best season in 16 years with an 8-1 Cup record, an Ivy championship, silver medals at the Amsterdam Invitational, and a spot in the final in the Grand Challenge Cup at the Henley Royal Regatta in just his second season. Bergman's 1990 Varsity Eight finished with an 8-0 Cup record, just the second in Penn history. Additionally, during his tenure, the program won the National Championship in 1991, two IRA Championship titles (1989, 1992), and four Eastern Sprints titles (1986, 1991, 1996, 1998). Overall, Bergman compiled 110 victories in his 22 years and coached five rowers who went on to compete in the Olympic Games. He was inducted into the Penn Athletics Hall of Fame last May as a member of Class XII.