November 22, 1963

[mikeyank]

Before I head out to my family Thanksgiving celebration, I do want to pay tribute to our 35th president, John Fitzgerald Kennedy who was murdered 49 years ago today. Next year being the 50th anniversary, I'm sure it will get a lot of national attention, but the date November 22 will never pass by without my thoughts going back to that tragic day in American history, and how distressed and sad a 13 year old kid I was learning of the horrific news.

 

[cumrag27]

JFK seemed more like a father figure to baby boomers like me/! I was heart-broken!

Before I head out to my family Thanksgiving celebration, I do want to pay tribute to our 35th president, John Fitzgerald Kennedy who was murdered 49 years ago today. Next year being the 50th anniversary, I'm sure it will get a lot of national attention, but the date November 22 will never pass by without my thoughts going back to that tragic day in American history, and how distressed and sad a 13 year old kid I was learning of the horrific news.

Dearest Mikeyank,

How well I remember this tragic day 49 years ago. Anyone living during this event has to always remember the exact place they were at when they heard the unbelievable news. I was in my 10th Grade English class in a Catholic High School in Little Rock. JFK was the first Catholic President in US history, we were all greatly moved by the announcement over our intercom informing us that he had been shot in Dallas. Immediately we all began praying at our desks that he would live, only to hear the sad truth later on. That evening, I remember my mother and I were visiting some Catholic friends, as if we had just experienced a death in our own family.

JFK represented so much promise for a better America that was squached by this horrible event. It is as if the whole country took a big pause and a long silence before taking their next breath again! As long as I am alive, this will be an unforgettable day for me!



Sincerely wounded by this unbelievably selfish act,



Stimpy

 

[stowe1]

Thanks for this thread, mikey. I cut my political teeth on JFK's election and his politics are the prism through which I judge political and governmental policies and philosophies. I am proud to call myself a JFK Democrat and will be until the day I die. His Inaugural Address is one of the most clear and concise definitions of what American domestic and foreign policy should be based on and in that sense is timeless. Nov.22, 1963 was one of the saddest days in my life and every year I still find it hard to believe the events of that day in Dallas. My closest straight friend owns a bar here in my area and he is 7years younger than I but remembers the events of that day well (he was 15) and we share a bond over JFK. I've known him for 20 yrs and every year on Nov. 22 I go over to the bar and we each have a shot of Jamesons in honor of JFK. I always hate when the 22nd falls on Thanksgiving - just adds an element of sadness to the day for me. But on my way over to my daughter's for dinner, I stopped at the bar and we had our shot. We decided we'd have to do something a bit more meaningful next year.



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