TYLER, Texas — Editor's Note: The above video aired in November 2022.
Tyler Junior College graduate and local clothing entrepreneur Romereo Brown is giving back to his alma mater by creating a scholarship for future TJC students.
Romereo Brown founded his own clothing line, Weird & Different, in 2020 after he graduated from TJC in 2019 with a business degree. He worked at the Target Distribution Center after graduation, but he wanted to make his own mark, TJC said.
“I started my company because I was teased and bullied throughout high school,” he said. “Actually, I was teased and bullied my whole life. I was born deaf in my right ear, plus I had a speech impediment, so people called me ‘Mushmouth,’ like the character from the Fat Albert cartoon.”
When he grew up, Brown said he grew to accept his individuality, he explained in the TJC news release.
“As I got older, my speech got better,” he said. “So, I created this company and came up with the logo of eating ice cream, because ice cream makes you happy. It makes you feel better.”
Since creating his brand and starting to sell his clothes out of his car, Brown opened a small storefront and his permanent store is set to open soon at Broadway Square Mall. He plans to have another store in Austin sometime next year.
The merchandise includes hats, hoodies, pants and shorts, all with his trademark of brightly colored, whimsical graphics.
Now, he's established the Weird & Different Scholarship at TJC, a $1,000 scholarship given annually to a TJC student majoring in business, fashion design, retail or marketing, the announcement read.
“I know how hard it is to be in college,” he said. “I was a broke college student, and I know what it’s like to eat ramen noodles all the time. There were times when I couldn’t pay my light bill and had to borrow money from my mom.”
Applicants must write a 500-word essay about why they should embrace their oddness.
“It’s about why you should love yourself, basically,” he said. “We want to encourage people to love who they are and why it’s OK to be themselves. For young adults, college is the best time to figure out who you are. TJC allowed me to be myself, and I met peers who were doing the same thing I was doing. I had a chance to fully express myself.”
Those who have information about the scholarship should email Megan Cumbee Burns, TJC scholarships senior manager, at mcum@tjc.edu.