I love the Boilermakers of Purdue! DA Freshman packed into the Elliott Hall of Music!
I had a great time today and wish you all the luck in the world on your new journey! Hit me here with a message or hit me at Facebook:sign in name ‘Comic Bernie’ or search ‘Bernie McGrenahan’! The site will be built by Friday- it is pretty light today! I have to download photos and learn the site! LOL
Thanks Boilermakers and all the educators and Orentation Leaders who make Gold Rush such an amazing event! To HOT, COW, McHarrison, Wiley, Meredith & P-Ville, and the HEART tandem- THANK YOU!!! OH- I got to Stand on the Football Field today- and see some of those monser Athletes up close at the training facility on campus! Wow- what I thrill! Halston, Tracy Corey- BIG UPS to you three! Love all of you, and thank you Freshman, for standing for me in my final moment! I felt like FLASHDANCE, the movie. What a FEELING! LOL Bernie
Hey! Bernie definitely presented the typical “alcohol talk” with a funny twist. I was really impressed by the comedy and passion that he put into the presentation.
I loved the show you gave for us; it was full of laughter but provided a purpose. The stories about you and your family were touching. Thanks for visiting PU! BOILER UP!!
Bernie,
I loved your presentation on the true dangers of drinking and hanging out with the wrong crowd. The way you talked to all of us as adults, instead treating us like children, really made me pay more attention. I know that you really were not just saying stuff, you actually meant it and wanted us to learn from your mistakes, but not in a lecturing way. I loved how you started off with jokes, and kept them coming at the approiate times during your inspirationsal message. It really lightened the mood. The stories you told about both of your brothers really brought tears to my eyes, even though I tried not to show it. When I first left my parents on campus, I wanted to go out and party and live up the college life. I now realize that I still can go to parties and drink, but to watch myself and look for warning signs from other people. I want to thank you for coming to Purdue University and sharing your experiences. You really have made an impact on many people and have been a highlight to our BGR week. Thanks!
loved the show man. hilarious comedy and a great message. the mix of the two was awesome.
Awesome show! thanks for a great, entertaining message!
I really loved you presentation! It brought tears to my eyes and made me proud of the decissions I’ve made in my life! Thank you so much!!
Hey you did a really great job. The combined message really got the point across!
Just wanted to say that I enjoyed your show. very reminiscent of my early years. Thanks for coming and helping the youngsters down the road to informed choice. Look forward to seeing you next year.
(Just a Stageguy supporting the talent)
Jason
The show was great and I thought the transition from comedy to the more serious issue of alcohol and drugs was transitioned to quite well. Hopefully, we’ll see you back at Purdue another time.
Hey, your message was really striaght up. Thanks for coming to Purdue and sharing your message; we really appreciated it. Gold Luck with the rest of your Tour and i hope to see you live agian!
Hey, loved the show today. It really did switch up the whole stay away from heavy drinking pep talk we get every year at every school. I enjoyed your stories in your comic manner and hope to see you again sometime. I’m sorry to hear about what happened with your brother Scott years ago. My brother got along that same path and hope it doesn’t come down to the same thing because I would really miss having him around. Thanks again for coming to Boiler Gold Rush!! Boiler Up!!
Bernie- it was a great show! I had a blast listening to your message. I was not a big partier in high school, I was considering drinking more in college. Your message has discouraged my drinking. Thanks allot, Tyler Mason from purdue, In
Dude, amazing show. You hit the major topics spot on and made it great fun to listen to. Thanks for coming to Purdue. If the rest of your tour goes 1/2 as well as it appeared to today, it will continue to be amazing. Say hey to Sean for me!
~ Shaun
that was awesome bro . . . with out a doubt one of the greatest lectures i have ever had . . . . good work, it put everything into perspective!
Hey,
I thought you had an awesome message, and the comedy really made the story have that much more of an impact. I think that it is amazing that you go around touring and probablly changing people’s lives! Keep it up; we need some one out there who can reach out to the youth and bring home this message.
Thanks for a great presentation today!! It was awesome and I believe you touched many people with your story. I hope you come back next year. Thanks again!!!
Great show Bernie… funny, and informative.
I liked the show…it really hit home
hey! your show was amazing!! great job! im not going to lie i was worried that it would be one of thoes boring talks about what to do with your life after high school! hahaha but i was really impressed…i was also impressed about your brother..i have a brother with autism and i know where you are comming from!! thank you so much!!
I really loved your show! It was very funny and inspirational. It had a great message and it kept me interested unlike many of the other boring lectures!
Thanks so much for comming to Purdue and giving us some laughs as well as some very good insight into social issues while in college. Keep on the great work. Boiler up.
heyyy! omggg your performance today was amazing. it kept me entertained the whole time while sending an important message that definetly caught my attention and made me emotional. its awesome that you go out and do that for freshmen! thanks againnn hopefully ill see u again next year!
hey i really enjoyed the routine. It really drove home the point of being responsible partiers.
I really am touched by what you said about siblings.. and people in general– it is better to be nice to them and get along with them no matter what because it could be the last time that you see them! I really take that to heart! Thank you so much for speaking!!
The session today was wonderful you sent your message out in such a new way I think a lot of students will really think now. I will admit that when I arrived on campus I was already planning on where and how much I was going to drink along with how I was going to avoid getting caught. The message today really opened my eyes to the problems it can cause. Our group had a discussion afterward and our tem leader reinforced the idea that we can still go to the frat parties and have that fun but there are non alcoholic alternatives that are offered at these parties so we don’t have to drink. This has truly changed the way that I will experience college. Thank you so much for sharing your experiences and opening up new ways to discuss the issues that we as college students will undoubtedly face.
Probably the best comedy/message thing EVER!!!
very cool dude, very funny and serious at the same time, I loved it!!
good luck with future messages yo
I enjoyed the show today Bernie! I thought it was very inspirational and not your average drug/alcohol presentation. Thanks for a great show, and you’re brother sounds like a really funny guy!
First =D
…
Loved the show.
Gimme!!!
Hey Bernie! Your Speach/talk/heart-to-heart was completely awesome today! Your story was so strong and moving! It really showed me that there are way better things to do in college than go out drinking! The fact that you are so close to your family is so awesome! I love my family to death! And Shawn, your brother, sounds like a really really really cool and funny guy! Thanks for coming here to Purdue to meet all us new BOILERMAKERS! It was a blast having you!
Jenny
P.S-
Thanks for hte “Fountian Run” Picture! WILEY AND MERIDITH ALL THE WAY!
Bernie,
I thought your show was awesome! I know just like me and many students that you reach out to those that have no idea what I going to happen that can be in there control! Beside the fact that you showed each and everyone of us that trying to take the high life of fitting in with the “cool” crowd isn’t always the way to go because you have the influence of bad decisions that you don’t realize can effect you later. But so much is in your very on hands of control, you just have to use the power of choice and not abuse it!
While you can have a great time in college and not have to party! Purdue is a great campus and I’m excited to be here finally! I can’t wait to see what I have in store for me through my education here at Purdue!
Finally, I thought I would say that your story about your brother Sean really hit home too me! I have a sister who has Down Syndrome and I love her to death! She is the oldes, but that kinda of makes me the oldest in reality because she never gets to do what a normal high school student did; hanging out with friends, drive, sporting events, and etc. She means a lot to me and I would have to say that besides my other sister and parents, she was the hardest to leave! She never judged me for any reason! She has always been open minded and I just wonder how she is handling me being away from home now! Having someone with a disablitiy in your family just makes you have a different outlook on life. Whether that could of been you or what your life would be like in there situation! They are unique individuals that share special bonds with their families and friends!
You had a great presentation!
Thanks
Shelby- Purdue ’11
Thought the show was pretty good, thanks for coming
Bernie, the show was awesome. I laughed so hard and it felt good since there’s so much stress this week. This was the first alcohol awareness speech that didn’t bore me out of my mind. Thanx for coming to BGR ’07!!
Thank you so much for coming to BGR this year. You were so funny. I really liked how you presented your message and I hope to see you preform again.
Bernie, you made the alcohol talk interesting, kinda like “The Girl Next Door” ‘s Sex Ed remix. You put a true, deep, and meaningful spin on a topic that had been beaten around and butchered for years. Thank you Bernie. Thank you so much.
Hey!! You are one of the funniest people I have ever heard. You did a great job on taking a topic a lot of us are tired of hearing about and making it interesting and attention-grabbing. Also, your story about your brother touched my heart. It makes me want to meet him and just give him a big hug and tell him how wonderful he is. I would love to meet him one day he seems like a great guy. Thanks for coming to BGR and telling your story. I am sure it touched a lot of hearts- I know it touched mine.
Great job!
Hi Bernie,
You really have a wonderful gift of humor and I along with everyone else enjoyed your show. Your message for college students was influential, emotional and inspirational. Because sometimes I like to learn about life through other people’s experiences, I will always remember your life story and your hardest obstacle which you tried your best to overcome.
Always keep up with your strength and stability — only greatness can come out of it.
Thank you so much for coming to Purdue, and keep impacting lives everywhere.
You truely have a gift. You know how to entertain us, but at the same time teach us lessons for life. It was a great show. Better than you said, a seventy-year old man telling us drinking is bad for us, seeing as we have heard it our whole lives. You gave us a perspective of it, and because of it, it should raise concern over the many party animals im sure will roam these purdue roads. You have truely inspired me to have fun, but to be responsible. Do everything i can to make these four years the best years of my life. just relax, have fun, but know where to quit. The show was awesome. Your many awards given to you among college comics and many tv appearances you have done are all well deserved. you gave a gift. thank you for sharing that with us today.
your speech was AMAZING! it was really nice to hear somebody give advice without it seeming like they were giving advice. awesome job!
Bernie, your routine was awesome today, and I definately loved the message that came along with it. I think your style in your presentation is more effective to people than most, and that’s what counts. I hope I’ll be able to see your routine sometime again!
Bernie! You ROCK! It’s nice to hear a presentation about alcohol/drug awareness that isn’t so ‘serious’, yet gets the point across perfectly. BGR is lucky to have a guy like you come speak! Wish you the best of luck as you approach your 20th year!! BOILER UP!!!
The talk was nice…Honestly, I was kinda “if-y” at first, but you warmed up and had me really laughing about the whole toliet thing…that was great. And it was also a nice way to really get through to us about alcohol…And hopefully I can catch u whenever u go on tv and I can say that I saw u in person, but thank you for coming and I really did enjoy you. Now that I think about it, I really admire you for finally coming out of your problem and fixing it. I praise you on your 19 year record and I hope that Sean is doing well too…thanks again for coming and you should definitly come back again next year!
-Megg
Hey Bernie! Like everyone’s been saying, it was nice to not have the typical “lecture.” You presented the topic in a way that was relaxing, funny and overall very interesting. I don’t know one person that wasn’t entertained. Thank you and BOILER UP!!!
your speech was funnn
i was laughing so hard!
boiler up!
Hey…definitly one of the best ways of covering a talk about alcohol and the affects. Great testimony, story, and inspiration. The comedy was definitly a major plus and highly contributed to the attention of the audience.
You did an amazing job combining comedy with past experiences and the wisdom you have because of them. Your performance wasn’t your typical lecture hall with boring, monotone and incredibly un-impassioned teachers. You were able to effectly make people laugh, and at the same time make them understand and think in a different way than may have before. Thanks a ton for making it to Purdue. You were awesome.
Thank you so much for that awesome presentation! Your touching story made me cry! You also really reminded of the importance of my siblings in my life. I actually have a twin sister myself and we occasionally argue. But after hearing the things that you have gone through it makes me realize that the things were argue about are really trivial. I called her today just to tell her how much she really means to me. Thank you so much for reminding how important my family is and how much I love them!
I enjoyed the rollercoaster ride of excitement and humor to the peak, and was truely left speechless as humor subsided into a true heartfelt warning to my peers and I.
Thanks man! That was a really great show and I can understand why you are so well respected. I am a fellow public restroom complainer and it always surprises me to hear just how much “crap” can be said about them. I really enjoyed your perspective on the issues too. Thanks again for doing such a great job!
Bernie, Never have I seen such an inspirational message delivered in a fun and exciting way. Your message hit home with me because of a similar incident that occured last lear. Unlike the situation with your brother abusing alcohol in highschool, my story involves my father abusing alcohol and drugs his whole life. My dad spent his life outside of reality, and last year it caught up to him when he was robbed and murdered by socalled friends. Your message today, although centered around college life, can easily be applied to people in all points of their life. You did an excellent job, and I hope to see you speak again in the future.
Hey Bernie!
Great Presentation today! It was a great time with an awesome message! I was impressed and touched! It was great to get to meet you and love the pics! It is great to see speakers be “real” with students and not preach the normal “Just Say NO” I hope our students take your story to heart and it planted a seed to possibly deter them from making those poor decisions!
THANKS!!!
Hey, awesome show!!! Loved the comedy, and I can relate to the message you gave, because a similar situation happened to some of the members of my family not long ago, the suicide, lifestyles, choices, ALL OF IT!!! Great message, I really think people should take it to heart. I can personally vouch, things like what you talked about do happen, and you can not pretend they don’t. Awesome job, and THANK YOU!!!!
BOILER UP!!!
Hey there Bernie,
I’m a freshamn at Purdue (obviously) and pre-psychology major (for now at least). I want to thank you for coming and speaking at BGR this year. Not only did it make me laugh really hard (and decide maybe taking two pairs of shoes might actualybe a good idea), but it really made me think. I’ve gotten countless talks over the last few months from friends, family, and mentors about making good decisons and being safe. Most of them were, well, monotonous and redundant to the point I just zoned out every time subjects of the sort were brought up.
Today, I’ll admit, I wasn’t planning on going to Happy Hour (mainly because it was attached to the “making good decisions” lecture, which I skipped) but I’m honestly really glad I went now.
What I really loved about Happy Hour was the way you went about telling your story. First you made us open by making us laugh and befriending us in a way, and then you gave insight and guidance on some tough decisions we will be facing in the near future. You didn’t lecture or preach, you just told us how things were, and it really helped that you’d been in those situations yourself and used yourself as an example instead of throwing statistics at us and talking about the friend of a friend of a friend or some guy on the news. You made everything personal, and mor importantly, you amde us think.
We had discussion groups afterwards, and if it hadn’t been for your delivery of a very ture and inghtful thoughts on the subject of drinking, a lot of things would have been left unsaid in those groups. (Mine actually opened up to each other for the first time and shared some very personal experiances.) If it had just been for the info section before you, we would have sighed through the group things and gotten them done as quickly as possible. Instead, we bonded and actually thought about what decisions we are going to make this upcoming year.
I want to thank you for the laughter and I want to thank you for the spark to our conversations, but most of all, I want to thank you for actually caring about what you were saying, who you were saying it to, and how you portrayed your message. It’s good to see people recover and be productive by sharing their past and helping others.
Not only was the drinking a major theme, but family. I’ve been trying really hard to have close relationships with my siblings and parents, but it isn’t always easy. My older brother still treats me like a little girl sometimes, my little sister doesn’t always respect me, and my parents can be controlling. I was actually lightly contemplating the consequesnces of just moving on now that i’m in college and just giving up on making healthy, open relationships with them. But, after hearing what you said to day, I once again became determined to make them a big part of my life and become closer to them and make them proud (which is now one of my top goals this year). That wasn’t a message I’d heard before. Thanks for sharing some fo your family story, it really touched me.
Okay,I’ve really rambled here, and maybe you didn’t read it all (you’re a bust man on an important mission) but soemwhere amongst my spelling and grammar errors I hope I got my point across. I’d really like a response from you if at all possible because you seem like an amazing person.
Thanks again for everythingand best of luck in your journeys!
Hey Bernie! So I took a Purdue consensus on campus here and it has been reached that you indeed are a BRAD PITT look alike!
hahaha! Thanks for posting the picture of my group and myself on your site! I feel special! Great program, and great message along with it! Thanks so much for being apart of Boiler Gold Rush! Boiler Up!
Bernie,
LOVED the show. It was a great laugh. Thanks a lot.
Good luck and hopefully I will see you again.
Your speech was awesome, and touching, it is truly impresive the life you have been able to create. Best of luck.
Amazing talk. I’ll keep your words in mind. Thanks
Bernie!
Man your speal today was really moving and inspirational, yet still funny and attention grabbing. You did a great job and I just want you to know that you convinced me to stand firm in my convictions and to remain the designated driver. You are doing a wonderful thing by sharing your testimony and getting through to todays youth in a way that no one else has been able to do for them before. Again great job, and thank you. Also I’m sure youve heard this before but you look very much like a stout brad pit.
- J
hey
i liked your show
it was fun
can i get a free shirt?
Dear Bernie,
I just got finished making the toilet paper puzzle on a toilet seat in our resident bathroom, and I was thinking about your presentation today.haha. I just want to let you know that your words really did sink in and made me rethink my own partying schedual. Because I wasn’t really planning on “partying,partying” throughout the week when school starts, but I kind of lack in the will power department. So, if I ever find myself in a situation that could potentially drag me down, I will truly stop and remember the message you got across today.
I thought the show was hilarious and eye opening at the same time. You did a wonderful job. Keep going for #20!!
If it’s possible to die of stress, I believe that, but if it’s possible to die of laughing too much, I believe that too. Your show was amazing, Bernie, you mixed comedy with drama of your personal life, something not many comedians do and something that’s effective in transmitting messages. Although I must say I must had a laughing overkill: I laughed so hard during your performance that my left chest was hurting, I thought I was having a heart attack. And if I was having a heart attack, I wouldn’t mind it either. Laughter is the best medicine there is, I would’ve been cured anyway.
Thanks again for your time and your amazing performance.
Awesome show Bernie, you reminded me of Jay Leno at the beginning of your stand up, Future Tonight Show host? Great job sending out your message to all of us.
Hey, i just wanted to say thanks for the speech last night. you did a good job combining the “serious”ness and the comedy. Thanks again for coming. Sorry for your brother.
-kevin
p.s. this is not the same kevin from response 55
That was a great show you put on for us yesterday. I was glad the serious part wasnt like all of the other do not drink speeches that are given. I have chosen to be ddrug/alcohol free ever since I was a kid . When I came to Purdue I knew still i would be that way. I do not want to ever drink because I know what it does to people. I think that the message got across to most of the students who wanted to listen, because there are those who want to just tone you out when you are trying to tell somebody a serious story. It is too bad that you cannot go to some schools in Ohio that could use a story like yours to get them back on track. Thanks for sharing your life story with us. Boiler UP!!!!
- Dan
hey bernie thanks for the presentation, it was hilarious but yet very serious and informative. i really enjoyed both parts of the show and will never forget it.
thank you
matt
Bernie!
You did an AMAZING job! It was incredible to hear your story and how it could truly relate to us as freshman. It touched my heart because I’ve had people close and dear to me that have attempted or thought about suicide and it’s scary to think that something like that might happen.
You showed us that choices are always there and that we need to take the time to think about things before we do it. Thank you so much! My favorite part was about your brother, Shawn, that you pick up. I love people like that – they are amazing people in themselves!
Thanks for everything! Boiler Up!
-Tiffany
“Wow” and “Thank you” are the first things that come to mind. I am grateful to have heard your presentation…it was like nothing I have heard before. God bless you for using your talent to make a difference and have a great time doing it. Best of luck with the rest of your tour and I certainly hope to hear you sometime again. Congrats on all of your success – it is well deserved!
HEY BERNIE!!! You were awesome! thanks for coming to BGR and presenting that inspirational but hilarious comedy show! hope 2 see ya again..
PS. It would be awesome if you came during the school year so that the whole school could see you also! just a suggestion – i hope all is well
god bless
Wow Bernie. All I can say is thank you. The old alcohol talks are so boring and after a while mean nothing, but your presentation the other day will certainly stick with me for the rest of my life. Thank you so much for what you do, putting that special twist on your talk really gave us all a last impression, and im sure will influence the lives of all of us.
Bernie,
I never expected the same comedian, who joked about college life and partying, to suddenly turn around and impact me, and I’m sure many others, so much with such a personal story. Not only did I get a realistic view of the drinking scene and the impact of alcohol, I was deeply moved by your relationship with your brother Shawn. I am a Special Education major, and those stories of deep friendship and love are the things that make me so privileged and so awed to be working in my chosen field. Your story is the exact story everyone who thinks about underage drinking needs to hear and relate to. I believe what you said about alcohol, that it is something to be respected and considered seriously, is the point to be stressed to all college freshman. More than anything, the everlasting love you hold for your family is what stuff our lives are made of, and need to be full of. I laughed, almost cried, and was deeply moved during your presentation, and will recommend everyone I know to look you up, and to live up to the new standard of living you challenged us to lead.
Thank you again, and best wishes,
Grace
I loved your show, it was both inspirational and full of wisdom. I’ve learned a lot from it and will apply much of it to my own life, which hasn’t had as many twists and turns as yours has, but hopefully wont have to with the help of your experience.
Also I can’t believe I’m actually in one of those pictures, the lower left one!!
Thanks and I cant wait till the next time you speak for us,
Richard
Dear Bernie,
The show you presented at Elliot was truly a great a show. It taught me a lesson and also was very funny. I can relate to the drinking situation. Before coming to Purdue I was drinking on the weekends at the beginning of my senior year. By the summertime I was drinking and smoking up to five nights a week. My family starting getting annoyed and upset as well as me not being very healthy. I was getting addicted to alcohol and the night life that came with it. This led me to being arrested along with eighteen of my other friends. I thought I was invincable. Your show taught me the road that can easily be followed. I don’t want to take this road and will take longer to think over my decisions in the future. I will probaly drink in college but I will not let it threaten my true reason for being here.
Thank you,
Sean
I really enjoyed you talk! It had a great message and i really appreciate you sharing your story with us! Thanks! God bless!
Bernie,
Thank you for coming to Purdue. I really enjoy it. It was fun and you really did get the message out to me. i know college is going to be a long road down, but i well keep your message in mine to help me decide what is right and wrong. Thanks again for changing my way of thinking, and hope you could change many other peoples their action on alcohol . It is pleasure having you here. Hope to hear your again. Thank you!!
Hey Bernie,
Thanks for coming to Purdue! As you can tell, a lot of people loved your show. The feedback we have been receiving has been great. Good luck with the rest of your tour!
Thanks,
Corey
P.S. Thanks for the shoutout! It’s posted on our office door.
Bernie,
The show was amazing. It really taught us all the affects that drinking can have on people. The story about your brother really hit home with me. Although it wasn’t due to drinking and partying, I have gone through a similar experience. My sophomore year of high school I left for school and everything was normal. I got called out of my second period class for an early dissmisal that I had no idea about. When I got to the front office, my mom and older brother who should have been at college were in the front hall. That morning my sisiter had a heart attack and had passed away. I know it wasn’t the same as you but when something unexpected like that happenes you can relate to the other person.
Great show and I hope you continue to preach the seriousness of letting the party get out of hand.
Thanks!
Jessie
You had a really good message, and it wasnt like just the typical speaker, just saying “dont drink.” Thanks for coming to BGR!
I loved the show last week! It was so great and it really inspired me! Thanks for all the laughs!
And FYI…Purdue is in W. Lafayette…you said Indianapolis on stage!!!