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Mini Page Heroes: Milton Hershey Mini Fact: Milton Hershey donated the home where he had been born to start the Hershey Industrial School. Next Week: Holiday music We enjoy many delicious treats around the holidays. Kids seem to love candy the most. If you’re a fan of chocolate candies, you probably know the name Hershey. Hershey chocolates are world famous — now. But in the beginning, Milton Hershey was a terrible failure in the candy business. Childhood Milton Snavely Hershey was born on Sept. 13, 1857, just before the Civil War, in central Pennsylvania. His ancestors had immigrated to Pennsylvania from Switzerland and Germany. His family moved around a lot, and Milton went to several different schools. When he was 14, he became an apprentice for a candy and ice cream maker in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Early businesses After learning how to make candy, he started a business in Philadelphia during the 1876 Centennial Exposition. But that business failed in 1882. Over the next four years, Hershey moved to Denver, Chicago, New Orleans and New York City, but he couldn’t find success in any of those cities. So he returned to Lancaster, where he had spent part of his youth. A friend lent him money, and Hershey again tried the candy business. This time he made caramels. Milton was selling his candy along the streets of Lancaster when a visiting Englishman tasted his caramels. That man happened to be a candy importer, and he loved Milton’s caramels. He wanted to send lots of them back to Great Britain. Suddenly, the Hershey caramel business was booming! Milton made a million dollars. In 1894, he decided to launch a brand-new candy business (chocolates) in a new town, Hershey, that he built for his workers. Today, about 14,000 people live in Hershey, or Chocolatetown, USA. Philanthropy Milton and his wife, Kitty, were unable to have children of their own, so they decided to start a home for orphan boys. Today, a vast complex of homes and schools serves the educational and family needs of more than 2,000 children. It is called the Milton Hershey School. The Hersheys were philanthropists . Philanthropists are people who use their money to help others less fortunate than they are. Helping others You too can be a philanthropist. Buy one less candy bar a week, and put that money in a special “philanthropy jar.” By this time next year, you’ll have enough money in your jar to buy a toy or something else for a child in need. The money in your philanthropy jar will help you touch someone’s life. It’s a great start. Your place of worship or community charity groups can help you find a child who needs a present. Write a note to go along with your gift. Encourage that child, whom you’ve probably never met, to never give up, to keep trying and to have hope. That’s what Milton and Kitty did. Over the years, their philanthropy has given hope to thousands of boys and girls. Words that remind us of Milton Hershey are hidden in this puzzle. Some words are hidden backward. See if you can find: Teachers: For standards-based activities to accompany this feature, visit: bbs.amuniversal.com/teaching_guides.html This issue of Mini Page Heroes is based on a chapter from “50 American Heroes Every Kid Should Meet” by Dennis Denenberg and Lorraine Roscoe. To order the book, go to heroes4us.com and click on “50 American Heroes Book” and “Order a Book.” On the Web: • bit.ly/2dKDcTY At the library: • “Who Was Milton Hershey?” by James Buckley Mini Jokes Mike: What kind of candy is never on time? Mary: ChocoLATE! Try ’n’ Find You’ll need: • 1 cup white chocolate morsels • 12 large fresh strawberries with green tops intact • 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate morsels Cook’s Corner Chocolate-Dipped Strawberries Unscramble the words below that remind us of holiday treats. osikeco pnepmrpeit cahelotco ncyda enac Answers: cookies, peppermint, chocolate, candy cane. Puzzling Zoos and aquariums have always been places where people could go to see different kinds of animals. Today, these places work to help keep endangered animals alive. Support your local zoo! Visit often, and volunteer! Eco Note The Mini Page® © 2016 Universal Uclick The Mini Page® © 2016 Universal Uclick Founded by Betty Debnam Issue 50, 2016 photo by Nick Olejniczak APPRENTICE, BUSINESS, CANDY, CHOCOLATE, EXPOSITION, HERSHEY, HOPE, IMMIGRATE, IMPORTER. LANCASTER, MILTON, PENNSYLVANIA, PHILANTHROPIST, SCHOOL, SUCCESS. adapted with permission from “The New 50 Simple Things Kids Can Do to Save the Earth” by The Earthworks Group, Andrews McMeel Publishing (andrewsmcmeel.com) * You’ll need an adult’s help with this recipe. Adapted from “The Robin Takes 5 Cookbook for Busy Families” with permission from Andrews McMeel Publishing (andrewsmcmeel.com). Resources The Mini Page thanks Dennis Denenberg, former teacher, principal, superintendent and university professor, and Lorraine Roscoe, a champion of heroes of every kind, for help with this issue. Thank You What to do: 1. Coat a large baking sheet with parchment paper. 2. In the microwave, melt the white chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl. 3. Dip each strawberry into the white chocolate all the way up to the stem. Cool strawberries on paper-lined pan. 4. When white chocolate is hard, melt semisweet chocolate in the microwave. Dip berries halfway up. Let chocolate set before serving. C E T A R G I M M I J E P O H Y D N A C R E T R O P M I M Y E X P O S I T I O N M J C I E R E T S A C N A L E B D Q L H K W P S S E N I S U B B Z T S J F A C H O C O L A T E M O R K P E N N S Y L V A N I A N E T S I P O R H T N A L I H P H S C H O O L S S E C C U S J B E C I T N E R P P A Y X X F W Milton Hershey in 1905. “I often hear people say that ‘children are not what they used to be.’ But I have the conviction that they are just what they always have been. Perhaps it is the parents who have changed.” — Milton Hershey photo courtesy Milton Hershey School
