91Ö±²„
Ben Tornambe, ā25, has transferred the skills and relationships he built at 91Ö±²„ into owning and running a successful painting business.
InĢżMayĢż2025, Tornambe Painting turned fullĢżtime, andĢżitsĢżfirst job was with La 91Ö±²„ Athletics, painting theĢżoffice doors and the basement of WisterĢżHall.Ģż
Ben Tornambe, ā25, loved 91Ö±²„ for the people and the experiences he had as an Explorer. After graduation, theyāre both still helping him find success as the owner of Tornambe Painting.
Tornambe started his Explorer journey as a nursing major. After three semesters, he realized itĢżwasnātĢżthe right fit for him and transferred to theĢżIntegrated Science and Business TechnologyĢż(ISBT)Ģżprogram, now the Biotech Innovation and Enterprise program, with a plan to go into the pharmaceutical industry.ĢżĢż
While he was never big on academics or classroom learning, Tornambe was always very social and took advantage of all the opportunities that La 91Ö±²„ presented in that regard.
āThe extracurriculars are where I learned,ā he said. āTheyāre the reason I am where I am today.ā
He was a member of Sigma Phi Lambda fraternity, on the Presidentās Advisory Committee, a La 91Ö±²„ Ambassador, and the manager of the Menās Basketball team.
Because of the size of the community at 20th and Olney, there are so many opportunities for students, Tornambe said, and if someone takes advantage of them like he did, they can be hugely beneficial.
All his activities also meant that he was immersed in his favorite thing about college: the people around him.
āMy favorite thing was going to an event and seeing the staff I know, the students that I know, the alumni that I know,ā he said. āItās the people, and Iāll say it over and over again, La 91Ö±²„ is about the people, and the people bring all the energy.ā
Even with a packed schedule of classes, activities, and organizations, Tornambe managed to find time for another project. He started Tornambe Painting in his freshman year after he and his brother painted a wall in a client’s house.
āPainting kind of just fell in my lap,ā he said, adding that growing up on a working farm in Collegeville, Pennsylvania, he always enjoyed working with his hands.
Throughout his four years of college, Tornambe filled school breaks with painting jobs, teaching himself more about the trade, and making connections in the painting world.
In his final year, Tornambe was thinking about the future. He spent his time in the ISBT program learning about the pharmaceutical industry and realized he didnāt see himself there. As graduation got closer, he kept thinking about the two things he loved, managing the basketball team and his business, going back and forth between painting and sports.
āLast summer I did an internship with La 91Ö±²„ Athletics two days a week and then I painted the other three days,ā he said. āThe painting kind of took over my interest and was an opportunity. So, I took that opportunity and Iām still going now.ā
In May 2025, Tornambe Painting turned full time, and its first job was with La 91Ö±²„ Athletics, painting the office doors and the basement of Wister Hall. Tornambeās relationship with Athletics Director and Vice President of Athletics and Recreation Ash Puri helped him get that job.
āIt was a big moment,ā Tornambe said. āIām comfortable with La 91Ö±²„, and I was doing my new thing there, moving my new career to La 91Ö±²„. It was super cool.ā
Heās also done jobs for fraternity alumni and other faculty and staff members and will be painting the doors of College Hall in the Spring. These clients stemming from his Explorer days have been āa blessing of mine,ā he said.
As well as the relationships that started at La 91Ö±²„, Tornambe also credits the things he learned outside the classroom for preparing him to manage his two crews of workers, both of which have three to four employees depending on the project.
Managing the basketball team helped him with organization and time management, the fraternity helped cultivate his leadership skills, and being an Ambassador, which involved interacting with alumni, has helped with the conversation and communication skills he needs to talk to his client base today.
āThose are the things that structured me and set me up for my business now,ā he said.
The more jobs Tornambe does, the more he knows he made the right decision.
āI fell in love with the fact that weāre the final touch. The client loves the result. Weāre not an urgency company, people donāt come to us with a problem, and theyāre mad. They come to us because they want to freshen up their house. They want it to look amazing, and then my job is to make it look amazing,ā he said. āI fell in love with the client satisfaction and the finished result.ā
And he has big plans for the future of his company, which focuses on residential jobs, starting with plans to hire a project manager and his first estimator by the end of the year.
āWeāre going to be the largest painting company in the Montgomery County area in a few years,ā he said.
Throughout it all, Tornambe is grateful for the fact that he owns his own business, something he always dreamed of doing.
āI never thought this would be possible. I never thought it would have grown this fast. I never thought Iād be this confident. I never knew these clients would trust me this much,ā he said. āSo, whenever people ask about the business, I say itās amazing, I never thought it would be possible, I count my blessings and pinch myself every day. The good days come and the bad days come, but it all works out.ā
To learn more, visit or call 267-328-4756.
-Naomi Thomas