In Memoriam

Written by The Patriots Press on . Posted in Obituaries

There is nothing I can add to the information surrounding the event of that fateful day, so I felt it would be my tribute to President Kennedy to share my experience and memory of that day.

I was just a child in the fourth grade living in Lynn, Massachusetts; and while I didn’t fully understand what it meant, like so many others, I will never forget that day or days that followed.

The news came into our classroom via a messenger and class was promptly dismissed.  The President of the United States, John F. Kennedy, had been shot.  As always after the school day, we went straight home, and as the day wore on and the news streamed in over our small black and white TV, my family and I were glued to the unfolding drama as Walter Cronkite kept a weeping nation apprised of the breaking developments.

We learned of his death, and we watched as the succession of power took place live as LBJ took the oath of office.  Never far from view was the now widowed first lady.  The epitome of grace throughout the entire episode, Jackie Kennedy held her composure as few could have.  I guess she felt that the nation needed her to be the face of strength in a time of immense personal and national tragedy.  She would have been correct; had she broken down, the sadness would have been even more unimaginable.

In the days that followed, we witnessed the suspect, Lee Harvey Oswald, shot to death in a Dallas Police Station by an up to that moment in time unknown businessman named Jack Ruby.  

We then sat dumb founded as one accusation and one theory after the other poured in up to the day of the funeral procession, and those theories have never stopped.  We watched as the procession passed the first family and Little John saluted the casket.  I remember feeling so badly for that poor kid.

The years have passed, and our nation has moved on as much as possible.  However, the lingering questions remain and we may never know the whole truth or the real impact of his untimely death.

The Patriots Press joins the rest of America in remembering you and honoring you on the 50th anniversary of passing.

Rest in Peace Mr. President.  Thank you for your life-long service to our nation.