With Valentine’s Day around the corner (and it being one of the biggest chocolate days of the year), we wanted to share an interesting chocolate story and the reason behind our Valentine’s giving project.

Here’s something you might not know about Hershey’s chocolate:

Milton Hershey, founder of the Hershey chocolate empire, grew up poor. Really poor. When he finally made his fortune, he and his wife Catherine dreamed of having children, but couldn’t. That heartbreak became their purpose: they poured their love into helping children who had no one else. So in 1918, following Catherine’s death, he gave away his entire company to fund a school for abandoned children.

The school would provide everything these children needed for productive, fulfilling lives: housing, education, clothing, food, life skills, completely free. Milton considered them family. Today, the Milton Hershey School serves over 2,000 children annually the same way.

His reasoning was simple:

“I never could see what happiness a rich man gets from contemplating a life of acquisition only.”

He wanted to give while he was alive to see it matter.

We’re following that lead this Valentine’s.

Why “We Care” Is Everything at MET63

So what does that have to do with us? At MET63, “we care” is one of our core values. It’s not just something we say. It’s who we are and how we work.

It’s easy for companies to talk about caring. It looks good in presentations. It sounds nice on websites. But caring isn’t a tagline. It’s a daily choice.

We care is why we show up when conventional solutions fail. It’s why we engineer the impossible for complex mineral processing challenges that others walk away from. It’s why we stay involved long after project handover to make sure our clients succeed.

But here’s the thing: if we can make the impossible possible for mining operations, we can make the impossible possible for children in our community who are cold, hungry, or struggling.

That’s what caring actually means. Not just excellence in what we do, but using that excellence to make a difference for others.

Living It This Valentine’s

So what does that look like in practice? This Valentine’s, MET63 and Segment.Earth are partnering with St Jane’s Community Centre to support abandoned children and families right here in our community.

Our team is collecting stuffed toys, non-perishable food, and clothing. These are tangible ways to show that caring isn’t just something we put on a website. It’s something we do.

Milton Hershey understood that the greatest wealth isn’t what you accumulate. It’s what you give while your heart is still beating.

We care is why clients trust us with their toughest challenges. It’s why our team goes above and beyond. It’s why we build partnerships, not just projects.

And ultimately, it’s why this Valentine’s Day, we’re not just talking about love. We’re living it.

Let’s share the love.

About St Jane’s Community Centre:
St Jane’s provides vital support to vulnerable children and families in our community.
Learn more: https://www.stjanes.org.za/

At MET63, we engineer the impossible. But more importantly, we care enough to make it possible for others too.

Learn more about Milton Hershey’s story.