Thank You, Milton Hershey

By Khloe Walker, MHS Junior

To Milton Snavely Hershey,

Thank you for making chocolate.

To most people around the world, it’s not a big deal. I mean, anyone could live without chocolate, right? The thing is, I don’t think I could. I couldn’t live without chocolate because HERSHEY’S isn’t just a type of chocolate to me. Those letters aren’t just bold lettering I see when I rip open my chocolate bar. To me, HERSHEY’S means home.

When I moved to Hershey, Pennsylvania, I read somewhere that eating chocolate releases a boost of hormones like dopamine and serotonin, essentially the same chemicals that make you happy. I don’t know if the chemical part is true, but I know HERSHEY’S chocolate makes me and billions of other people happy.

When I bite into HERSHEY’S chocolate, I think of my sisters and the movie nights we planned every Friday. My mom let us stay up late, and we saved up all our candy for those nights together. I think of my brother, always wanting me to make s’mores with him, then diving after pieces of chocolate that fell before our dog could eat them first.

I’m older now, and my sisters don’t have movie nights with me anymore. My brother moved away, and my dog passed away, but the memories live on.

Hershey is my town. I’ve met people here that I’m going to know for a very long time. I’ve built a life in your town, Mr. Hershey. I live at Milton Hershey School in Hershey, Pennsylvania, and my life will never be the same because of you. Chocolate, your chocolate, is remarkable because every chocolate candy bar that is sold supports young people like me to be our best selves each day.

Mr. Hershey, I know you didn’t lead a revolution, and most schools skim over your name in history class, but you are an international leader. HERSHEY’S chocolate carries memories that people relive repeatedly in every bite. You have created billions of happy moments with cocoa, milk, and oil.

HERSHEY’s was never just chocolate. It is savored during the best, and sometimes the worst, moments of life. When I walk into the store on the end of my block, I always see the HERSHEY’S bar on the counter, and I smile to myself. I smile because I see my family. I see my school, my friends, and my town. I smell s’mores, and I replay dozens of movies in my head. A million moments wrapped into one.

Seven letters, one word, and 12 small, brown squares completely changed my life.

Thank you for making chocolate, Mr. Hershey.