SCENE THE
THE
Spring Issue 4
April 30, 2021
THESCENEFP.COM
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Expressing creativity See page 4
St. Louis Community College at Forest Park
Inventor auditioned for ‘Shark Tank’ By La Toya Smith The Scene staff The world has electric light bulbs because of Thomas Edison, streetlights because of Garrett Morgan and bifocal glasses because of Benjamin Franklin. Forest Park has its own inventor. His name is Marvin Thomas, and he’s a 62-yearold student who plans eventually to earn an engineering degree. “I’ve been inventing things since I was 8 years old,” he said. Thomas started as a young baseball player, trying to improve his bat speed. He came up with a device to help with arm and leg strengthening. As an adult, Thomas realized he had a knack for solving problems, particularly those related to construction, plumbing and home maintenance. “I love to help people,” he said. “It gives me joy, and it keeps me busy.” Thomas has invented about eight products, ranging from a self-cleaning gutter system to a hands-free, vertical and horizonal leveler. He has secured one patent and applied for seven more.
By La Toya Smith The Scene staff
Toilet tank supporter
In February 2020, Thomas auditioned for “Shark Tank,” a reality TV series with a panel of celebrity investors who decide whether to spend money to help entrepreneurs after watching presentations on their ideas for companies or products. “The whole experience was exhilarating and amazing,” he said. Thomas pitched his “toilet tank supporter” to the show’s producers in Kansas City. They are the ones who pick contestants to go before the panel. The toilet tank support isn’t much bigger than a pack of cigarettes. It’s propped between a toilet tank and the wall with a hanger that holds it in place. “It allows the structure to remain sturdy,” said Thomas, who has done his own plumbing for years. “It takes less than a minute to install, no tools are required, and it’s economical.
Photo by Fred Ortlip
STLCC student and inventor Marvin Thomas sits on the Forest Park campus.
“My invention (allows plumbers) to take things apart and fix them. install toilet tanks, regardless of the mea“I think his destiny was to be an inventor,” surement dynamics.” Perry said of her father, Marvin Thomas. The COVID-19 pandemic hit shortly after Perry was the one who secretly conThomas auditioned for “Shark Tank,” so tacted the producers of “Shark Tank” to he wasn’t invited to get him an audition. appear on the show. “It allows the structure to Thomas wasn’t surBut he hopes to see prised. She’s always his toilet tank sup- remain sturdy. It takes less been tenacious and a porter manufactured go-getter. and sold at stores that than a minute to install, no Thomas is former carry plumbing equipstar baseball player tools are required and it’s in high school and ment. “Shark Tank” procollege and a vetereconomical.” ducers gave him peran who served in the mission to use the U.S. Marine Corps. Marvin Thomas show’s name in his Over the years, he advertisements and has worked mainly promotional materias an automotive als. mechanic. He has three grown daughters. “It was sad that I couldn’t go, but it He’s been attending Forest Park in 2018. still helped me get my main invention out Thomas operates under the company there,” Thomas said. “… It allowed me to name BFT (Benjamin Franklin Thomas). get my foot in other doors.” More information can be found on the website at bftproducts.com. Ben Franklin’s son Since the “Shark Tank” audition, Thomas Thomas has always loved working with has invented four more products. He has his hands and coming up with inventions already started the manufacturing process that would serve multiple purposes, accord- for his hands-free, vertical and horizonal ing to his daughter, Marilyn Perry. She leveler. thinks his father had a big influence on him. “Right now, I’m trying to get a loan from Benjamin Franklin Thomas was an auto- the Small Business Administration to marmotive instructor at Vashon High School, ket it,” Thomas said. “It’s definitely someO’Fallon Technical High School and North thing needed in the construction industry.” County Technical High School. He loved to
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Marvin Thomas uses this flier to help promote his toilet tank supporter.
Commencement ceremony comes with a twist Forest Park will have a commencement ceremony this spring, but it will be “drive-thru” due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Students will get their diplomas from 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday, May 15, with a stage set up in front of the new Center for Nursing and Health Sciences on campus. “The ceremony gives the students a chance to walk across the stage and feel like things like graduation can still be normalized,” said Dedra Duncan, director of the orientation, transition and peer mentor program. “The graduation committee listened to the students and, because of that, they will get the graduation they deserve.” Information is being sent to students who registered, including instructions on how to line up in cars. Signs also will direct traffic. Students can bring one vehicle each. They will exit their vehicles, walk across the stage, get their diplomas and pose for official photos. Family members and friends may park elsewhere on campus after the ceremony for candid photos. “It was a little sad for the students not to graduate in 2020,” said student Somer Wain. “Now hopefully things will be back to normal, and this graduation will make students feel accomplished. Everyone looks forward to graduation. This day is a very special day.” Joyce Starr Johnson, vice chancellor of academic affairs for St. Louis Community College, said the district will hold four smaller commencement ceremonies this year instead of one big ceremony at Chaifetz Arena, as is traditional. Hours are 6 to 8 p.m. May 14 for the Wildwood campus, 9 a.m. to noon May 15 for the Florissant Valley campus and 5 to 8 p.m. May 15 for the Meramec campus. Forest Park Bookstore employee Delainey Maughs said she hopes college officials can make the commencement ceremony as personable as possible for students. “That (drive-thru) graduation may not have the same decorum for students as graduations in the past,” she said. All four commencement ceremonies will be accessible for disabled students who need wheelchairs, public transportation or other arrangements.
The Scene earns 17 awards in state contest
Scene THE
Web manager: Victor Paletta
Circulation: Zacchaeus Windham Reporters/photographers: Markell Tompkins Layout: Katelyn Clancy Faculty advisers: Teri Maddox, Fred Ortlip
The Scene is a publication written and designed by students at St. Louis Community College at Forest Park, 5600 Oakland Ave., St. Louis, MO 63110. The office is in F Tower, Room 408. The telephone number is (314) 6449140. The e-mail address is the_scene_ fp@yahoo.com. All text, photos, graphics and other content are property of The Scene and may not be used without permission. Views expressed are not necessarily those of St. Louis Community
College, its Board of Trustees or administration. The Scene welcomes opinion pieces and letters to the editor. They should be signed and include the writer’s student or staff number. They can be mailed to the above addresses or delivered by hand. We reserve the right to edit for length and taste. The Scene will run classified ads for students free of charge. They should be submitted in the manner described above.
The Scene student newspaper at St. Louis Community College at Forest Park won 17 awards in this year’s Missouri College Media Association contest. Announcements were live-streamed April 9 on Facebook. The MCMA is an association of student newspapers and other media at colleges and universities in the state of Missouri. The Scene competes in Division 4 with other community colleges. “We are particularly proud of these awards, considering The Scene operated from March through December with a skeleton staff, which Maddox sometimes worked virtually, due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Faculty Adviser Teri Maddox. The Scene shut out competition in the News Writing category, which is a very important category, winning all of the top three awards. One silver lining to the pandemic has been increased readership on The Scene’s website, which helped keep students, faculty and staff informed while campus was closed. That website, by the way, won a first-place award in the MCMA contest. “I would encourage people to ‘like’ our Facebook page (@thesceneforestpark) to receive notices that new issues have been delivered to newsstands and posted online,” Maddox said. Here is the list of awards: NEWS WRITING First place: Joshua Phelps for “Restaurants on
Oakland” Second place: Ethan Tutor for “Tower demolition” Third place: Mackenzie Gregory for “Where have all the trees gone?” FEATURE WRITING Honorable mention: Caasan Whitney for “Cooking with COVID” REGULAR COLUMN First place: Jordan Barber for “College during a pandemic” ENTERTAINMENT REVIEW Second place: Jordan Barber for “Underground the movie” NEWS PHOTOGRAPHY First place: Larry Cox for “Tree stumps” Second place: Markell Tompkins for “Voter registration” FEATURE PHOTOGRAPHY Second place: Caasan Whitney for “Quiet kitchen” Third place: Caasan Whitney for “Masked model” Honorable mention: Caasan Whitney for “Dental hygiene” NON-POLITICAL/ENTERTAINMENT CARTOON First place: Larry Cox for “Math test” PHOTO PAGE First place: Katelyn Clancy, Markell Tompkins and Joshua Phelps for “Countdown to demolition” Third place: Katelyn Clancy, Larry Cox, Markell Tompkins and Angelica Woody for “Day in the life” WEBSITE First place: Victor Paletta for “The Scene” SWEEPSTAKES (Awards weighted and combined) Third place BEST OVERALL NEWSPAPER Third place
@thesceneforestpark
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A DAY IN THE LIFE OF
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Campus chatter Dustin Brown, 33, music “I primarily express creativity through music, but I also express creativity with cooking, visual art, writing and crafts.”
Eve Fonseca, 58, English as a second language “During COVID, I returned to making music, specifically the piano. As a kid, I spent a lot of time with that, but my new thing is jazz piano. I’m really enjoying it. So something that used to be a chore, now it’s like my favorite way to spend time and learn something new and push myself.”
Scott Colvin, 52, network IT infrastructure “I express creativity by getting my job done and trying to be a better person every day.”
Ashley Foster, 36, librarian “I like to create music to express my creativity, or I do display boards in the library.”
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Jessica Mungle, 27, dental hygiene “I express creativity through journaling. When I write in my journal, it gets me in a mindset, putting my thoughts on paper.”
Creativity? RES
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Somer Wain, 31, human services “I express creativity by taking pictures with my camera and editing them. I like to make cards for my family and friends. I also like to doodle in my journal and crochet. I crochet blankets and scarves. That’s how I express creativity, in addition to clothing and makeup. I consider makeup an expression of creativity as well.”
By Markell Tompkins
Janice Wallace, 47, education assistant in fine arts “Being an artist, I feel that I always express creativity. I can’t help but feel creative. Cooking, making art, being organized … It’s all creative. Pretty much any time you create something, that’s creative.”
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Wilondja Amimu, 20, nursing “I express creativity through studying because I’m learning new things and learning a new language. I came from Tanzania in east Africa as a refugee. English wasn’t our first language there. It was Swahili.”
Patrick Baker, 32, dental clinic manager “On a personal level, I draw and create things. I like to use my hands, and that translates well with this job. There are a lot of things I have to do to maintain equipment.”
Susan Paszkiewicz, 60, art “I express creativity by drawing. It’s my favorite thing to do. It is so immediate, especially with charcoal. I am experimenting with colored medium on clay, and so far, I really like it. It is like doing a monogram or a charcoal drawing because you can put a mark down and wipe it away and create toning.”
Layout by Katelyn Clancy
The Scene
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April 30, 2021