John F.

Kennedy Life Remains By: Lakin Koski

Mr. Duerr English 10B December 30, 2011

John F. Kennedy has lived an extraordinary life that has marked someone in a certain way in there life time. He has made speeches that has impacted someones life or has made new charity groups or laws that saved someones life. John F. Kennedy was not just a great man but he was once our President of the United States of America. His past, life in the White House, and how his death impacted many people afterwards shows how much he cared about everyone and how everyone cared about him. John F. Kennedy did not live a very healthy life as you would expect, he was sick with the scarlet fever at two years old and was very lucky he survived. In addition to having more illnesses than the average person and a bad back, he also suffered from Addisons disease and Hepatitis. Not only did he survive all of his sicknesses, but he grew up with nine siblings! He was very close with his oldest brother Joe Jr. They went to school together and competed in sports as well together. John, though, was very different from his brother; who got good grades, excelled in sports, and who was following in his fathers footsteps. John, on the other hand, got average grades, was a good athlete, and didnt exactly know what he wanted to do when he grew up. In addition to attending Stanford, Princeton, and Harvard Universities, John attended college in England. When he was there he wrote his thesis called Appeasement at Munich. Kaplan, Howard. Kaplan S. Howard. New York: DK Publishing, Inc., 2004. 39. Print. He got such high honors on it that he decides to publish it as a book called Why England Slept. Kaplan, Howard. Kaplan S. Howard. New York : DK Publishing, Inc., 2004. 39. Print. His book became a best-seller and he sells more than 40,000 copies of it. After that, he and his brother both went into the Army. John becomes the skipper of the PT-109 boat, but disaster strikes when a Japanese destroyer slices the boat in half. John takes charge of the rest his crew and swims them to safety on to an island. When he got back from his mission he received the Navy and

Marine Corpse Medal as well as the Purple Heart. But again something bad turns for the worst; his brother Joe Jr. was killed in a plane accident. Johns dad Joseph Kennedy had high expectations from Joe Jr. and one of those expectations was to become the first Irish-Catholic President of the United States. With Joe Jr. gone, John F. Kennedy decides to follow his father dream and to become President! But before he does that he marries Jackie Bouvier on September 12, 1953 and they have two children named Caroline and John Jr. In January, 1960, John F. Kennedy defeats Senator Hubert Humphrey, from Minnesota, and becomes the Democrat presidential candidate. He goes on to defeat Richard Nixon and on November 8, 1960, becomes the 35th President of the United States of America. At his inaugural speech he said, And so, my fellow Americans: Ask not what your country can do for you- ask what you can do for your country. Kaplan, Howard. Kaplan S. Howard. New York: DK Publishing, Inc., 2004. 79. Print. This sets the momentum for the can-do attitude the country develops. John F. Kennedy once said, But the greatest danger of all would be to do nothing. Kaplan, Howard. Kaplan S. Howard. New York: Dk Publishing, Inc., 2004. 96. Print. And John F. Kennedy did not do nothing, instead he started working as the President right away. On March 1, 1961 he established the Peace Corpse which sends young Americans to foreign countries to assist them with building roads and schools and to teach them new skills. He once said, How many are you willing to go around the world and travel to help other people? "Peace Corps." JOHN F. KENNEDY PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Jan 2012. <http://www.jfklibrary.org/JFK/JFK-in-History/Peace-Corps.asp&xgt;. He also helped pass integrate schools and public areas for everyone to have an equal right and opportunity in life. In addition to these accomplishments, the White House was also busy and bustling with many

things. Jackie Kennedy ran a preschool at the White House, she restored the White House, and she also had fine art classes at the White House. The Kennedys were one of the most popular people in the world at that time and everyone wanted to have there picture taken with them. Jackie, though, hated the publicity and photographs; she tried to cover herself up with scarves and sunglasses. On November 22, 1963 everything seems like a normal day. Click, click, and click photographers greet the Kennedys with cameras in Houston, Texas where John was scheduled to give a speech. But the unexpected happened; John F. Kennedy is shot in the head and assassinated as his convertible heads toward Dealey Plaza. Many people go into shock and Jackie is one of those people as she tries to pick up the remains of John F. Kennedys skull. She also does not change out of her clothes that are full with blood until she returns home because she wanted to show the world what has happened. The assassinator was Lee Harvey Oswald and he was put in jail, but two days after he was put in jail a nightclub owner named Jack Ruby shot and killed Lee Harvey Oswald. When Jack Ruby shot him he said, You killed my president, you rat! Kaplan, Howard. Kaplan S. Howard. New York: Dk Publishing Inc., 2004. 106. Print. Till this day, the assassin of John F. Kennedy is still a mystery to everyone, because no one knows why Lee Harvey Oswald killed him or if he acted alone or if there was a conspiracy to kill him. John F. Kennedy was one of the greatest presidents in history because he brought positive change to our county. He kept his fathers dream, and made history, by being the first IrishCatholic President. Kennedy will never be forgotten; his accomplishments helped shape the great country that we have today. His past, life in the White House, and how is death affected many people will never be forgotten.

Work Cited Kaplan, Howard. John F. Kennedy. New York: Dk Publishing, Inc., 2004. 39. Print. Kaplan, Howard. John F. Kennedy. New York: Dk Publishing, Inc., 2004. 39. Print. Kaplan , Howard. John F. Kennedy. New York : Dk Publishing, Inc., 2004. 79. Print. Kaplan , Howard. John F. Kennedy. New York : Dk Publishing, Inc., 2004. 96. Print. Kaplan , Howard. John F. Kennedy. New York: Dk Publishing, Inc., 2004. 106. Print.

"Peace Corps." John F. Kennedy Presidential Library And Museum. N.p., n.d. Web. 3 Jan 2012. <www.jfklibrary.org/JFK/JFK-in-History/Peace-Corps.asp&xgt;>.