Growing up in a small Alabama town, Marco’s family struggled to send their two kids to college. Marco’s father, a welder, was injured on the job one pivotal day, changing the course of their family’s lives forever. 

“My momma ended up picking up extra shifts, you know, trying to make ends meet,” Marco said. Though his parents tried to keep their struggles away from Marco and his brother, it still affected everyone. “We didn’t really have to hurt for nothing, but that was because she was working extra, like, extra extra hard.” 

Marco’s mother hoped to send both boys to college, despite the hardships and struggles her family faced. Eventually, Marco and his brother got jobs to help their mother support the family. Yet still, there wasn’t enough to send them both to college without significant struggle. 

“I [was] pretty good in sports…I ended up getting a football scholarship,” Marco explained. But even that wasn’t quite enough to make ends meet. “It was only a partial [scholarship]. And how partials work is, you know, it doesn’t pay for everything.” There was still a gap to fill. 

Thankfully, Kids’ Chance arrived to fill that gap. “Alabama Law Foundation | Kids' Chance…it’s like a blessing.” The support Marco and his family received allowed Marco to continue college. 

Without the support from Kids’ Chance, Marco wonders where he’d have ended up. “Say I didn’t get this scholarship. I could have been working…just a small 9 to 5.” Many people in his hometown never even went to college, much less stuck with it the way Marco was able to. 

“I have two jobs lined up, both in my field of work.” Marco, grateful for the opportunities provided by Kids’ Chance, has been able to study hard and impress professors enough to find multiple opportunities in his computer science major. “I wouldn’t be able to get these kinds of jobs without this scholarship.” 

The support offered by Kids’ Chance has led Marco to become a Kids’ Chance Ambassador. He hopes to spread the blessings he’s received to other kids in situations like his. “So people know just because you have a couple of hardships in your life, it’s not over.” 

Marco continues to study hard in his courses and is enthusiastic about his opportunities. “I just feel as though this opportunity…was a blessing. Without it, I don’t know if what I got going for myself would be possible.”