The Rev. David Maitland, pastor of First Baptist Church of Butler, 221 W. New Castle St., and director of the Slippery Rock Baptist Camp, 130 Elliott Lane, recently was presented the 2022 Service Award from the Milton Hershey School in Hershey.

This award is given annually to an alumnus of the school who had been nominated and approved by the board of directors of the school’s alumni association. It was presented at the homecoming banquet at the Hershey Lodge, which was attended by nearly 2,000 alumni, as well as teachers and house parents of the school.

“We were flabbergasted when we learned he had won,” his wife, Bonnie Maitland, said. “We thought you had to be a brain surgeon or something to win the award.”

“But they told him it was unanimous that he got the award because it’s based on what you do to continue the mission of Milton Hershey,” she said.

David Maitland was born in Butler and became a student at the Milton Hershey School at age 8.

“He was there nine years,” Bonnie Maitland said. “He was a true orphan. Both his parents died of cancer. He lived on Whitestown Road. He remembers when they came and told him his mother was dead.”

David Maitland said, “I come from a large Hungarian family. My mother was one of nine children. When she died, there was a big meeting. My brothers were kind of wild.

“They decided to send me to Milton Hershey. It was the best thing for me,” he said.

He remembered his aunt and uncle, Theresa and Chuck Stirling, taking him to the school.

“It sounds cruel, but they took me to a playroom and left me,” he said.

“I was 250 miles from home. They did the best thing for me. I hated it the whole time I was there,” he said. “But the orphanage, there was a lot of things they did for me. It taught me discipline and character. When I went into the Army, it was a piece of cake.”

He stayed at the school nine years and went into the Army, where he served in the reserves for many years. He also worked in the body shop of an auto dealership in Butler.

He said he never expected to win the Service Award.

“The criteria for winning that award is doing something for the school,” Maitland said. “There are 11,435 who have graduated from the school.”

“There is a very active alumni association with 1,000 members,” he added.

Maitland was able to invite guests to the banquet and was given a lodge location to meet and greet people following the dinner.

John Foley, president of the Milton Hershey School Alumni Assocation, made the presentation. He pointed out Maitland’s dedication and service to MHS, his fellow alumni, and his obvious love and compassion for the students.

Foley noted Maitland has been responsible for all the religious services each year during homecoming weekend for the past 20 years.

“We go every year,” Bonnie said. “Every year they have the homecoming in October.”

Maitland thinks he won the award because he conducts the three services he officiates every homecoming weekend: an 8 a.m. service at the graveside of Milton Hershey, a 9 a.m. service at the school’s rotunda and a 10:15 a.m. service in the memorial grove to remember all school graduates who died in the preceding year.

“There must have been 100 names because of COVID,” he said.

Maitland said in 2000 he was asked to run the services, aided by his former wrestling coach.

“I wrestled at Milton Hershey. I wrestled at 95 pounds. My wrestling coach was the inspiration of my life,” he said, adding the coach, Dan Witman, at 87, still is part of the services.

Just as he never expected to win the Service Award, Maitland never expected to write a book about his nine years at Milton Hershey.

He wrestled there and recently published a book, “Through the Eyes of an Orphan,” based on his experiences at the orphanage.

The book, he said, came about when his grandson asked for an orphanage story.

“He came back and asked for another one,” said Maitland, which gave him the idea to write a book to help other children in his position.

“I turned it into life lessons. There’s a parallel between orphans and children that have been adopted. There’s a chapter to the grandkids on the lessons I’ve learned,” he said. Published three years ago, he said the book is available on Amazon.com.

Maitland has served as senior pastor of First Baptist Church for 22 years and has been the director of the Slippery Rock Baptist Camp. He also runs a basketball ministry at Butler’s Cubs Hall on Wednesday evenings.

He and his wife live in Grove City. Their daughter, Rachelle; her husband, Joe Emmett; and their five children live there as well.