File photo by Travis Rosenau Ross Bernstein speaks during the New Ulm Club Athletic Banquet this past Saturday at Martin Luther College. Bernstein talked about the importance of perseverance and overcoming failures.

NEW ULM — Fairmont native and author Ross Bernstein had a long seven days last week before speaking at the 72nd Annual New Ulm Club Athletic Banquet Saturday at Martin Luther College.

“This last week was rough — I had speaking engagements in New Jersey, New York, San Antonio, San Diego and I flew into Minneapolis from San Diego that morning to be in New Ulm Saturday night,” he said. “I have cousins in New Ulm in the Piesers and whenever I am asked to come to speak in small towns in will do it if I can. For events like this it is just the right thing to do.

“The kids at this banquet are good kids — they are letterwinners who for the most part will go on and go to college and their parents are there too. And the [banquet] is cool because some of the past speakers have been Jesse Owens, Dan Devine and Murray Warmath — it is a cool event,” added Bernstein.

Bernstein talked about his program “The Champions Code” and about his growing up in Fairmont and playing baseball against New Ulm.

“My crowning achievement against New Ulm sports was my one-time pitching against Brian Raabe, who went 7 for 7 off of me with three home runs,” Bernstein said. “I think I threw 150 pitches that game.”

But Bernstein’s message at the banquet was the ability to overcome failures in life.

“You need to remain optimistic and positive,” he said. “I grew up in Fairmont and tried out for the University of Minnesota hockey team. But I got cut but I turned that into becoming the mascot for the Gophers — making lemonade out of lemons — and turned that into a dream job writing 50 books and creating the Herb Brooks Foundation. Turning that negative into a positive.”

Bernstein also said that he is currently going through cancer treatment.

“I am staying positive and optimistic despite the fact that there are going to be challenges along the way for me,” he said. “It is a Stage 4 cancer — I got diagnosed with that early this year — and I am on chemotherapy right now — so it is pretty challenging. But I am very optimistic — my numbers are good — so I am very positive.”

Bernstein said that being a speaker has been great.

“I have been able to travel all over the world with my family and have a positive impact on hundreds of thousands of lives.”

Bernstein said it was an honor to be at the New Ulm Club Banquet.

“I spoke here in 2020 during the pandemic and we had to social distance,” he said. “But what an honor to be here — it is the oldest and longest-running banquet in Minnesota. And just to remind all of the athletes in attendance that all of the parents, faculty and staff of the three high schools have come here to support you. You should be grateful for everything that they have done to get you to this point .You can pay them back by doing good — you can represent New Ulm. This is a great community and I am proud of the fact that I grew up in southern Minnesota.”