Milton L. Hershey my grandpa (not to be confused with Milton the chocolate man).

Grandpa was only in France for a few months before the war ended, and the close call that he mentioned in his book happened on November 3, 1918. The war ended eight days later – November 11, 1918. Because God protected him that day, I get to be me and celebrate my life.

Two weeks after he came home.

He arrived home on June 6, 1919 (his 24th birthday). Two weeks later—June 19, 1919—he married my Grandma Nancy Heagy.

Their first child, my dad, was born July 15, 1920.

Cerwin and I were honored to have them at our wedding in 1963 and have him perform our ceremony.

A few years ago, my cousin Barry brought some of Grandpa’s personal army things to a Hershey reunion.

When visiting the memorial wall in France, Barry said it stood out to him that there was no Milton L. Hershey listed on the wall of the deceased—or we would not be here.

His helmet

I was surprised at how heavy it was.

I learned to know Grandpa after my birth in 1944. After my dad took over the family farm, I grew up in the same neighborhood as he and Grandma and attended the same church where he was a respected minister, he quickly became one of my heroes.

He was 80 years old when he signed the marriage certificate for my dad and stepmother. He wrote in his memoirs that my dad was the only person for whom he performed a marriage ceremony twice. First when Daddy married my mother in 1943 and next when Daddy married my stepmother in 1975 after the death of my mother in 1974.

Bruce Hershey (my dad), me, Grandpa, our first grandchild Elizabeth, and our daughter Diane.

Grandpa lived long enough to celebrate being great-great grandfather to our granddaughter Elizabeth in 1986. He was 91 in this picture.

He died in 1988 at the age of 92 years, 8 months, 18 days.

He was definitely one of my heroes.