Lope Diaz and Aixa Morales-Diaz

Lope Max Diaz II, known as Max, or Maxito to his family, was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, in 1976. He moved to Raleigh, North Carolina, with his parents, Lope Max Diaz and Aixa Morales, and sister Aixa Diaz in 1988, after his father was appointed to a faculty position in the College of Design (then the School of Design) at NC State University. Max attended Oberlin Middle School and Athens Drive High School, both in Raleigh. During that time, he and his family frequented NC State football and basketball games at Carter Finley Stadium and Reynolds Coliseum. It didn’t take long for Max’s Wolfpack fan awareness to develop; he soon became one of the Pack!

Naturally, he chose NC State for college and majored in political science in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences. During his junior year he began displaying an interest and excitement in studying law. After graduating with honors from NC State in 1998, Max attended the University of North Carolina School of Law. He obtained his Juris Doctor (JD) in 2001 and passed the North Carolina Bar Exam that same year.

After a brief practice as a private lawyer, Max realized that type of legal career wasn’t for him. He soon sought and obtained the position of Assistant District Attorney in the Mecklenburg County District Attorney’s Office in Charlotte, North Carolina. Max was quoted as saying, “This job saved my life.” He loved serving others through public service, and in the courtroom he wanted justice. Max worked at the Mecklenburg County District Attorney’s office for 12 years and worked his way up from prosecuting misdemeanor crimes to homicides. He was later promoted to supervisor of the office’s domestic violence team.

In 2017, Max died of glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer, for which there is no cure. He left behind a loving family, including wife, Jennifer, and son, Adam, and dear friends who miss him greatly and are proud to honor his memory through this scholarship.