A sweet (and chewy) path: One man's life in gum, and the ripples his innovation caused
Marcus Hayes
Marcus Hayes
Reporter · Killeen, TX
Marcus has been a reporter for 4 years and has a degree in Community Development from the University of Texas at Arlington. His work has appeared in various local publications including the Killeen Daily Herald, where he focused on grassroots initiatives and community events.
More from Marcus →Reporter · Thursday, November 12, 2026 at 5:14 PM · 1 min read
He was 87, living in a retirement village outside a mid-sized Pennsylvania city. Walter Diemer looked like the other residents there, really — except that this one had, long ago, done something momentous. Somewhat inadvertently, he invented the stretchy, usually…