My Grandfather was pals with one of the m’s in m&ms!!!!

How fun is that?!?!?! I didn’t know this growing up…how could my mom have forgotten to share this story?...especially since chocolate was a pretty important commodity in our house! Just recently I was chatting on the phone with my Mom…I am Right Coast US…mom is Left Coast US and somehow m&ms came up and she threw out that her Dad was pals with one of the m’s in m&ms! I was so intrigued. What?!? So here is a little story Mom told me.

Mom, who was about 10 years old in 1945, had a pen pal from Rotterdam. Lots of kids had pen pals back then…now I guess there isn’t much need, but it was exciting to get an “airmail” letter. Always on the thinnest paper…to make the postage cost as low as possible. So, World War II had been going on for several years and in one of mom’s letters to her pal…she asked her pal if there was anything she might need. The response back was YES…please send chocolate if you can. Due to the war…I guess chocolate was difficult to obtain.

So, mom mentioned this problem to her dad, my grandfather Charles, and he said he would see what he could do. He knew his pal, Bruce Murrie, may be able to help. He told Bruce about my mom and her pen pals chocolate shortage.

M&M’s had only come about in 1941, so they were still fairly new to the public.

Soon, a large box arrived at my mom’s house. There was a note that another box of the same size had been sent on to Rotterdam, to my Mom’s pen pal on mom’s behalf. Inside were the large size bags of m&m’s. Plain as the company did not have the peanut m&ms until 1954. A whole bunch of them! Mom called her BFF and the two split the box. They were so happy and excited…so was the pen pal!

So…I grew up with m&m’s around all the time. Only recently did I learn the reason why they were so special to mom. How fun is that! I just love that story and am so glad I finally heard about it!

(image credit: http://www.bradkent.com/images/bradkent.com/wrappers/wrappers/mars/m-m-plain.(gif)