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MONTAGE Serving the St. Louis Community College - Meramec community since 1964 • ACP Award Recipient VOLUME 60, ISSUE 4
DEC. 5, 2024
WWW.MERAMECMONTAGE.COM
Remembering Dr. Reni Joseph
Photo courtesy of Schrader Funeral Home & Crematory
Jacob Politte MANAGING EDITOR
PHOTO BY NINA GOMEZ STORIES FROM INSIDE ADVANCED CERAMICS: Students from advanced ceramics gather around the kiln on campus nov. 22, viewing their creations. Fueled with life stories about art, love and hobbies, the class has a lot to share. Learn more about their perspectives on ceramics on p. 5.
MetroBus Route #21 expands
New stops in Fenton after regular stop at Meramec Jacob Politte MANAGING EDITOR The long-standing MetroBus route to Meramec along Watson Road, known by many as the #21, has undergone a massive change starting this week. The route has expanded beyond Kirkwood, with stops now included in Fenton, specifically at Wally’s and the Amazon Warehouse on the Assembly Parkway. These stops will add time to the route, with stops at Meramec now only occurring once an hour. Following the stop at Meramec, Bus #21 will continue into Fenton, before returning to Shrewsbury. Director of Service Planning for Metro Lance Peterson said that the route was extended “to make the Via service more effective.” For clarification, “Via Metro STL” is an app that lets you hail a vehicle directly from your smartphone using the Via app, and travel to any location within the service zone during operating hours. It’s a shared-ride service. Peterson said that the college was not informed of the change by Metro, instead saying that Rider Alerts were placed on all buses and at affected bus
Map and Schedule by Metro Transit stops. “We have thousands of businesses we serve along the routes,” he said. “This is why we place notices on buses, papers, radio stations and TV.” Peterson also said that five meetings were held to receive comments. He said that one of these meetings was held at the Shrewsbury MetroLink Station, the starting point of the #21. No changes appear to be coming to the other route that serves campus; the #56 (Kirkwood-Webster) will continue
to run as normal. That bus also makes a stop at the Shrewsbury MetroLink Station. During the week, the first bus on the #21 route will leave that station at 5:08am, arriving at the Meramec campus at 6:01. Stops at Meramec will continue to be hourly until 6:13pm, when the route stops at Meramec about every 90 minutes until midnight. Check metrostlouis.org for the full new schedule.
Meramec Chemistry Professor Reni Joseph, Ph.D, passed away peacefully on Monday, Nov. 11 in Ballwin. No cause of death was publicly revealed, but she had been battling what was described by colleagues as “a long illness.” She is survived by her husband, Dr. Suresh Mathew and her children Hannah, Jason, and Shayna. A funeral service for her was held on Thursday, Nov. 14 at Schrader Funeral Home in Ballwin. Joseph was a long time member of the campus’s Chemistry Department. In her obituary as it reads “As a professor, she was highly respected by her students, always prioritizing their needs and fostering an environment of learning and growth.” Michael Hauser, a colleague of Joseph’s in the Chemistry department, remembers her fondly. “I was the first at Meramec to meet Dr Reni Joseph as I was guide when she interviewed with our department,” Hauser said. “I instantly liked her. In the years we worked together, I found her high intellectual ability was surpassed only by her unfailing graciousness. Reni always had a kind word for everyone and was outstanding at working with and for students.” Hauser also spoke about how supportive Joseph was of him when they discussed academics. “When we would dialogue about the art of teaching, she never failed to positively support my ideas using one of her favorite words ….’brilliant.’ She was a modest woman, devout Christian and outstanding wife and mother. During her long illness she was always upbeat and positive. Her loss will be felt by many, and I regret that many future students will not have the opportunity to be nurtured and educated by this special person. View the obituary at https:// www.schrader.com/obituary/ reni-joseph-phd