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Milton Hershey School Houseparents Turned the Light Back on in My Life

By Myron McCurdy ’82, MHS Elementary Division Home Life Administrator

My siblings and I lost our father and our mother, so when I first came to Milton Hershey School, I wasn’t quite sure what houseparents were. I had been in foster homes and was almost five. The first thing I learned about houseparents was that they were always there. I always felt safe.

Houseparents became my protectors. And then the older I got, I learned they also became teachers. And I know my houseparents helped change the trajectory of my life and many of my brothers.

After everything I had been through in the first four years of life, it was like the light had been turned off. In a matter of a year or two at MHS, because of my houseparents, the light came back on. And it was obvious that I wasn’t in this alone anymore.

Milton Hershey School alumnus and current Home Life staff member, Myron McCurdy, shares how his MHS houseparents changed his life.

There were seven McCurdy boys here at one time from two families. And if our houseparents didn’t give up on us, then I can’t do anything less. I keep working for these kids and trying to be what turned the light back on for me.

My wife and I were relief houseparents for some time. Now, I’m a Home Life Administrator for Elementary Division. I work for these kids, and I try to be a father figure to them. They must know that someone is in their corner because I know my houseparents were always there for me.

And so, what I’ve learned working for MHS is that I need to be a protector. I need to be the teacher. I need to eventually be the guide and then a mentor to our students. Houseparents make the difference in the success of kids at MHS. We must keep working for them, too.


Alumni, Staff Honor Housefathers at Milton Hershey School

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