For more than a decade, sixth-grade English Language Arts (ELA) students at Petal Upper Elementary (PUE) have embarked on the same journey: diving into Alexander the Great: Master of the Ancient World and debating the legacy of one of history’s most complex figures. The book has become a rite of passage—one of those shared experiences nearly every Petal student remembers.

But behind the scenes, teachers were quietly facing a problem. The Scholastic title, part of the out-of-print Wicked History series, had become nearly impossible to replace. Every year, more classroom copies disappeared due to wear and tear, and with the book no longer available for purchase in large quantities, the future of this beloved unit looked uncertain.

Last year, ELA teacher Ed Kemp reached out to the book’s author, Doug Wilhelm, asking if he had any suggestions. Wilhelm encouraged the department to contact Scholastic directly to request permission to photocopy their own classroom editions. It seemed like a long shot, but it was the best idea they had.

What happened next felt nothing short of extraordinary.

Over the summer, Scholastic’s Corporate Responsibility Director, Talia English, reached out with unexpected news. Instead of granting photocopy permissions, she told the school that Scholastic would be happy to donate extra copies from their reserved donation inventory.

That alone felt like a victory. Mr. Kemp replied, hoping for 300 copies—enough to keep the unit going.

Then came the second surprise: A shipment arrived at PUE containing 500 brand-new, hardbound copies of Alexander the Great. Enough for the entire grade level, with extras to last for years.

Mr. Kemp was amazed, saying: “Our sixth grade ELA team feels so blessed by this incredible donation. Now students can continue to read and enjoy this book for years to come, all the while learning essential lessons in historical literacy, public speaking, and civil discourse. What a gift to PUE!”

He added, “This gift really showed us a lot about Scholastic’s priorities, both their generosity in giving back to our community and their obvious commitment to promoting the power of reading.”

Thanks to a thoughtful response from Scholastic—through a program the school didn’t even know existed—a tradition cherished by thousands of Petal students now has a new life. A story about a long-gone book turned into a reminder: sometimes the simplest outreach can lead to an incredible act of generosity — the kind of moment that reminds us why #MomentsMatter.