Later, he moved back to North Charleston and earned his GED. He enrolled at Trident Tech in the fall of 2011. While delivering pizza to pay for school, he took classes to pursue his goal of becoming an electrical engineer.
Maraleius was a good student and often helped his fellow students outside of class. His dream was to work for a large company in the area like Bosch, Boeing or GE.
Chuck Ackland, who was the coordinator of the Electrician: Automation and Industrial program at the time, said the program was challenging and had an enrollment which tended to get smaller as the semester went on.
Ackland noticed something unique about Birdsong right away. “He always sat front-row center," he said. "He was well-prepared and when a lot of students tended to hang back he was going to get everything he could out of me."
On March 9, 2012, Maraleius was killed during a robbery while making a delivery. The following month his family and his employer, Domino’s Pizza, established a scholarship fund in his memory.
Maraleius chose to be an organ donor in 2011. Because that choice, he saved four lives and gave two others their sight. He and 70 other deceased donors from across the nation were honored in the 2013 Tournament of Roses Parade in the Donate Life float.
Ackland was retired in 2018 when he decided to make a contribution that would endow the scholarship so that the funds would continue to assist students well into the future.
He said, “Maraleius had to work to pay for school. He was in class two days a week and working the other days. His attentive and bright personality made those two days the days I looked forward to.”
The Maraleius Birdsong Endowed Scholarship supports students in the Mechatronics and the Electrician: Industrial and Construction associate degree programs and will continue to do so for many years to come.
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