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Albert E. Kidd

by Corey from Fort Wayne

Have you ever sat in front of a warm fire with a long metal pronged fork, and a marshmallow on the end? You watch it burn. It gets puffy, swells up like a big marshmallow balloon, and then gets golden brown. At the last second you pull it out and smash the once beautiful masterpiece between two graham crackers with a piece of chocolate smashed in right along with it. Have you ever stopped to think, what would this s'more taste like without this marshmallow? It wouldn’t be the same. We should appreciate the marshmallow, and who brought it back from its shadowy depths. We owe the marshmallow to Albert Eugene Kidd.

Marshmallows (Google)
Marshmallows (Google)

A small cosmetic and extract company in Chicago is where our dear Albert started his career. Then, a short while after the store opened, he saw a new opportunity and he took it. This new opportunity was to supply lemon drops and roasted peanuts to an agent of the state called the Union News Company. He actually hired his son to make his machinery. Once again, another opportunity arose to Mr. Kidd during the World War I. This time the American Marshmallow and Candy Company went out of business. Well there goes the sweetie goodness. No, actually, seeing this new opportunity he developed an interest in a new enterprise. He acquired the marshmallow equipment, and off his new career went. There he was selling marshmallows, marshmallow cream, and syrups left and right. This new career was going better than planned. So he seized the making of peanut butter and cosmetics, and committed all of his efforts into the fluffy goodness. During the Great Depression his son George came back with new ideas, which would save the company from failing. George soon took presidency of the company after Albert’s death in 1937.

How do marshmallows impact me? Well it means following your dreams no matter what. Even if your dream is making marshmallows. Take on new opportunities like he did. If you follow your dreams you will be happy and prosperous in everything that you do. As Mrs. Debaillie says, "Follow your marshmallow dreams.” I plan to do just that.

Without marshmallows where would the world be? Especially Ligonier, Indiana. After all, it is the marshmallow capital of the world. There is actually a marshmallow festival down in Ligonier. So why not appreciate the mallow? Everyone else does. What would we eat when we camped? Stick a piece of bark on the end of the pronged fork? No, without the marshmallow we don’t have s'mores, cruncher mallows (peanut butter and marshmallow cream), marshmallow covered chocolates, or Lucky Charms. These simple objects impact our live so much; we just never take the time to appreciate the small things in life.

More of the wonderful marshmallows (google)
More of the wonderful marshmallows (google)

The way I will make them known is maybe with an article for the paper, or create marshmallow t-shirts and sell them to people, post pictures up about marshmallows and what they mean to you. Really the possibilities are endless. It all comes in good time.

So what will you choose? The creamy, sticky, sweet, mouth-watering dream or the nasty burned wood. I mean I would take the marshmallow. It’s not my fork I’m eating off of. Just listen to Mrs. Debaillie and follow your marshmallow dreams.

Page created on 9/15/2009 12:00:00 AM

Last edited 9/15/2009 12:00:00 AM

The beliefs, viewpoints and opinions expressed in this hero submission on the website are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the beliefs, viewpoints and opinions of The MY HERO Project and its staff.

Related Links

Marshmallows - My hero's life work.
History of marshmallows