OAKWOOD — Desmond Vaird says he is on cloud nine after being selected as the Technical College System of Georgia’s 2016 Adult Education Student of the Year.

Exceptional Adult Georgian in Literacy Education honors were presented during a recent banquet in Atlanta by Gov. Nathan Deal and Gretchen Corbin, commissioner, and Beverly Smith, assistant commissioner for adult education with the technical college system.

Vaird, who was selected by a panel of judges from business and education, will receive a full scholarship to the technical college of his choice.

In addition, his fees and books will be paid for through a stipend from the Brenda Wise Scholarship Fund, established in 2014 in memory of Wise, a lifelong supporter of adult education.

Over the coming year, Vaird will travel the state as Georgia’s EAGLE ambassador for adult education, speaking to students, civic groups, legislators and others about lifelong learning and the importance of earning a GED credential.

Never in a million years would oldest of seven children born to a drug-addicted mother in North Carolina think that the direction of his life would have changed so dramatically — for the good.

Raised by his grandmother who instilled in him integrity, honesty and the importance of education, Vaird’s road to EAGLE honors was anything but smooth.

His inspiring story makes him a perfect spokesman for the value of education and the fact that “drugs and alcohol have no place in success.”

“I began hanging around the wrong crowd and didn’t really know who I was around the same time my grandma passed away,” Vaird said. “I turned to drugs and alcohol to numb the hurt, pain and guilt.”

Her lifelong wish was for him to complete his education and live a good life, and he had disappointed her when at age 16 he dropped out of school in 2003.

His journey down the wrong path would continue for more than a decade.

“It was 11 long years of mental and physical suffering before I realized enough is enough is enough and I deserved better,” he said. “I remembered what my grandma taught me, the true meaning of integrity, the true meaning of honesty and how important an education was for me.”

On Sept. 4, 2014, he enrolled into The Potter’s House, a long-term, Christ-centered, residential discipleship program for chemically addicted men located in Jefferson.

He soon learned the program required men without a high school diploma to take GED classes through Lanier Technical College. He was inspired to learn.

“I knuckled down,” said Vaird, who earned his GED in March 2015 and then enrolled in college courses at Lanier Tech with the goal of becoming an elementary school teacher.

He added that “the GED came so early, that I knew it came from God.”