CHAMPAIGN-Prior to his death, University of Illinois professor, Dr. William Patterson, inspired Champaign residents to build new things.
For some, it was a new life.
Miquel Smoot told IPM Reporter, David Pierce, that he was living in Champaign and was unsure of what he wanted to do with his life.
Then one day in 2020, he was working on remote control cars in a store and met Dr. Patterson.
Patterson brought Smoot on-board his organization, “Ghetto Genius” to educate Youth on STEM.
Smoot said Patterson showed him opportunities he had never imagined.
“He definitely opened my eyes up to like, ‘you can do anything possible’,” Smoot said. “I never in a single day thought I would build an [remote control] track and [Dr. Patterson] made that happen.”
That track was in the Garden Hills Neighborhood in Champaign last summer.
Smoot now lives in Arizona working as a Cement truck operator setting foundations for new buildings by using remote controls.
Here’s a moment from a November 2022 workshop Dr. Patterson and Smoot shared reflecting on the impact “Ghetto Genius” has made on Smoot and others. It took place at the Don Moyer Boys and Girls Club.
Smoot says driving remote control cars is peaceful and a joy shared by many residents in Champaign-Urbana after “Ghetto Genius” gave away dozens of the toys over the years.
