Milton Hershey knew what it felt like to fail. Before he became the “Chocolate King,” he failed—spectacularly—twice. His first candy business in Philadelphia went bankrupt. His second in New York also collapsed. By the age of 30, Hershey was broke, in debt, and living back with his parents in rural Pennsylvania.
Most people would have given up. Milton didn’t.
By 1900, he’d finally succeeded beyond his wildest dreams. The Hershey Chocolate Company was making millions, and he’d built an entire town—Hershey, Pennsylvania—for his workers, complete with homes, parks, and trolley lines. He married Catherine “Kitty” Sweeney, the love of his life, and built a mansion overlooking his chocolate empire.
They had everything—except the one thing they wanted most: children.
Unable to have children of their own, Milton and Kitty decided to give their love to those who had no families. In 1909, they founded the Hershey Industrial School, a boarding school for orphaned boys. It wasn’t a charity in name only—it was a real home, where children lived, learned trades, and were treated with dignity and care. The school began with just four boys, each personally interviewed by Milton and Kitty themselves.
When Kitty died suddenly in 1915, Milton was devastated. But instead of withdrawing, he deepened his commitment. In 1918, he did something unprecedented: he transferred the majority ownership of the Hershey Chocolate Company—worth $60 million at the time—into a trust for the school.
Every Hershey bar, every Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup, every Hershey’s Kiss would now fund the education and care of children in need.
Business peers thought he was foolish. “What if the company fails?” they asked. Milton’s reply was simple:
“If I wanted monuments to myself, I’d have built them already. I want to build futures for kids who have none.”
He expanded the school, building more homesteads and hiring teachers. Orphaned and impoverished boys now had warm beds, food, healthcare, and education.
When Milton Hershey died in 1945 at 88, he had given away nearly his entire fortune. But his legacy didn’t end—it grew.
Today, 79 years later, the Milton Hershey School educates over 2,000 students—boys and girls from low-income and single-parent families—completely free of charge. The Hershey Trust now manages over $17 billion, funding housing, meals, clothing, healthcare, and college scholarships for every student.
Over 11,000 alumni have graduated—doctors, engineers, artists, teachers, and entrepreneurs—all made possible by one man who turned failure into purpose and grief into generosity.
Milton Hershey never had biological children, but he became a father to thousands. His statue on the school grounds shows him kneeling beside a young boy, eye to eye—a reminder that his empire was never just about chocolate.
Because every Hershey bar is sweet, but the story behind it? That’s even sweeter.