https://www.hockadayfs.com/obituary/gary-birdsong



GNSP

4/8/2025 9:02:20 AM

Whoah. A big part of my college experience. I wonder what his kids and grandkids thought of him?

There's a video on that link. I'm sure he requested the "Fear God" banner to be placed on his casket. They put it up 4:00. God blew it off at 4:30.

4/8/2025 9:12:44 AM

^I grew up in the RR area and always suspected he was related to some of the Birdsongs that I knew out there. I looked on Facebook and I have mutual friends with some of the relatives listed in his obit, but none of them shared anything about his passing and the obituary only got a couple of likes and shares when Hockaday posted it, so I'm not sure how much he was even in any of their lives.

4/8/2025 9:53:19 AM

From his retired LEO daughter

Quote :

"It's 3 am. So many thoughts racing through my head. After my father passed away suddenly, a week before I was supposed to go see him, and tell him I forgive him for the past. My mind is spinning in a whirlwind of emotions. My life has literally flashed before my eyes. The what ifs, the, I should haves, the, if only this, or only that, my life would have been so different. My kid's lives would have been so different. I can barely write this as I am shaking. I have an urgency to get this out. It's like a calling that the Lord has given me. The funny thing is, just before my father died, I was asking the Lord, "What is my purpose? Tell me please, what is my purposed? What is it you want me to do?" I had asked HIM this question because retirement, is not going as planned. This transition in my life, has made me question where do I go from here? What do I do, in my last days here on earth? I am 55 years old. I may have 15 years left, if I'm lucky. I sit here day after day, trying to earn extra income, so I can merely pay the bills. I'm supposed to be traveling, seeing family, and friends across the globe. Don't get me wrong, I know things could be alot worse, and I thank God for everything HE'S given me, especially the ability to over overcome years and years of painful life circumstances because of the effects from others on my path. There are very very few people in my life that know my story, and it hasn't been a good one. After 50 years, I'm here to open up, and reveal only a small glimpse, of the trauma that I've had to endure. I was just a four year-old, beautiful, innocent, brown-eyed, curly-haired, girl, who was playing with my two year-old brother, in our grandmother's yard, when my father, came up from behind me and snatched me into his heavy arms. His hands were covering my face, to prevent me from screaming, and I remember kicking him as he was throwing me in a van. He took me faraway, from the family who loved me. After that, the last nine months were a blur. Eventually, my family was able to locate me. But, the story that follows doesn't end happily, it's just the beginning, of a life hood of trauma, which one day, I will plan to write about, which has nothing to do with him. Please note, I don't write this to bad mouth my father, who hasn't even been laid to rest yet. I share this to tell others about his and my relationship, and more. My father, and his mother, had a lifetime of severe abuse from his father, from stories, I've heard from other people. Back in the day, my father was evil as they come. He ran with the Hell's Angels, and even out of that meanless, he suddenly gave his life to God. Although, God in his image, was different than most of us all have heard about. I was always embarrassed to tell ANYONE who my father was, plus, I couldn't, to protect my family. After my kidnapping, I was found and returned nine months later. With the courts permission, my mom fled to MN, to escape him, but he couldn't know where we were. It's funny how we can remember things from 50 years ago, but whe can't recall, what we did the day before. I remember walking to school with my new best friend, and hidding every time I saw a motorcycle or van. I lived in fear, and loneliness. My whole world changed. My father was known world-wide. If you search his name, he was famous. He was known by several names, one that comes to mind, is the Pit Preacher. He would travel nationwide and preach to students on college campuses, and everywhere he could. Downtown Raleigh, was the most recent. People mocked him, threw him in dumpsters, and more, because of his unorthodoxed way of preaching. If you search Gary Eugene Birdsong, you will find him in Wikipedia. Yes, he was that famous. If you search him in YouTube. He was documented, and interviewed by students and arrested by police for trespassing, because he wasn't leaving until they heard about Jesus. Many, questioned him about his views of the Bible. I questioned him myself. I didn't agree with his teachings of the Bible. You'll have to watch on YouTube to understand. It's only been four days since his untimely death, and my mind won't shut down, especially after yesterday where my brother and I went to his trailer to secure his belongings. My father had very little, nearly nothing. As we walked through his run down trailer, this man, who I never really got to know, I paused. He had nothing, but clothes, no materialistic things, not even a tv. What I did notice, he had Bibles, and signs (Stop Sinning), and pamplets that read; Biker turns to Christ. He was proud of that, which he should have been. No one leaves the Hell's Angels. He loved loved loved preaching. I few times, I would follow him on Facebook, and YouTube, but not often, because it was too hard to watch. Also, I hated him, for what he put my mom, me, and my brother through. I wanted to disassociate him from my life, but deep in mind my, he never left. My whole life, I've been emotional scarred, and didn't know how to come out of it. At times, more than I care to admit. Pieces of me, followed in his footsteps. I've had so much anger, and I hope one day, my children, husband, and everyone else I have ever hurt will really forgive me, as I have now forgiven my father. He never told me he was sorry for hurting us, but in my heart, I knew he loved me, NO MATTER, how many people have recently told me that he didn't. I know they were only trying to help me heal from the guilt I have been feeling for not reaching out to him sooner, and I know I can't go back and change that. It's too late. I thought I had time. Dad, if you can hear me, I forgive you. ?? I never called him that. I ask everyone who reads this, hear my heart and soul, I have spilled through my fingertips, PLEASE forgive those who have hurt you, make amends, before it's too late. Even if, it's just in your heart, I know deep down, I did the right thing by excluding him from children's life. He was not mentally stable, at the time, and I don't know if he ever was. I am not hear to say either way. I did try a few times, but he was STRONG natured, his way or the highway. I just couldn't let him be around my children after that. I just know that everyone, including him, have personalities have been formed by how they were raised. I wish I would have went to therapy so that I didn't negativity effective others as I did. I wish I would have gotten help for everytime I laid in bed, and wanted to die, because of the demons from my past kept haunting me. Luckily, I overcame with prayer. Nothing to me, is more than important than family. No amount of money can buy the happiness I feel when my, mom, brother, husband, kids, and grandkids are all together. The saddness and loneliness I've ever felt, steemed from having to leave my grandma, uncles, aunts and cousins. I never got to see them because we were in hidding. Remember to love each other, and forgive others as Jesus died a painful death, to forgive us, before you run out of time. I don't want anyone to ever feel this way again. God has now told me my purpose ?? and I'm not finished. For now, I will say Goodnight, and RIP daddy, I forgive you, and I'm sorry you didn't get to hear me say it. One week that's all I needed. One week. Don't let time slip away. Forgive and really share your love. Don't dwell on the past, as I have. Keep pressing, now matter how hard the battle within you is. Remember God loves you. The Pit Preacher's daughter.— with Gary Birdsong."

[Edited on April 8, 2025 at 4:13 PM. Reason : ]

4/8/2025 4:10:02 PM

^Wow good sleuthing. Kinda figured he was probably a POS to his family.

4/8/2025 5:05:16 PM

GNSP

4/8/2025 7:33:43 PM

[Edited on April 8, 2025 at 9:15 PM. Reason : what is this a picture for ants]

4/8/2025 9:15:27 PM

gn...sp

4/8/2025 10:03:31 PM

Quote :

"A big part of my college experience"

Were you one of those people who tried to debate him?

4/8/2025 10:50:24 PM

cddweller would try to engage him

4/9/2025 12:57:32 AM

lmao The Coz bringing that meta GNSP. You need to be like a fifth tier TWW historian to get that reference. Which admittedly most of us that are still kicking around on this site are. Not as easy to find a picture of the atrium on fire though.

4/9/2025 8:18:29 AM

ehhhhh fuck forgiving a shitty dad

4/9/2025 8:51:20 AM

Quote :

"^Wow good sleuthing."

It didn't take much. I just went to a popular social media platform and searched "Gary Birdsong" and it was one of the first results.

Quote :

"Were you one of those people who tried to debate him?"

I was not, I never engaged him. I'd occasionally listen to him while eating taco bell or lil' dinos at the atrium.

4/9/2025 9:22:29 AM

^^^Thank you for your appreciation!

4/9/2025 10:35:47 AM

dude, you're going to Hell?

4/9/2025 10:45:56 AM

Quote :

"Not as easy to find a picture of the atrium on fire though."

Also not that hard, though:

https://d.lib.ncsu.edu/collections/catalog/technician-2003-04-23

22 years later this month.

Y'all old!

4/9/2025 10:52:01 AM

^ There was no picture of it on fire there

4/9/2025 2:41:15 PM

The camera melted, of course!

That's like saying there's no picture of the tornado leveling my house.

4/9/2025 3:37:19 PM

Except there's plenty of pictures of tornadoes leveling houses

4/14/2025 8:56:40 PM

Not MY house, though.

4/14/2025 8:59:48 PM

Gary got a writeup by NCSU.

https://news.ncsu.edu/2025/04/16/goodbye-to-a-brickyard-preacher/

4/17/2025 12:05:35 PM

Let's be honest, the guy was a total asshole. He helped me complete my loss of faith as an early adult.

Good riddens

4/17/2025 1:04:26 PM

Quote :

"Upperclassmen knew ways to avoid him."

Yeah it's called ignore him.

4/17/2025 2:37:32 PM

I was amused. Definite Campus Character.

4/17/2025 8:08:56 PM