A Reflection of my Kennedy Interest

Today is the 62nd anniversary of when President John F. Kennedy and First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy made an official visit to the island of Puerto Rico where they were hosted by Governor Luis Muñoz Marín & his wife Inés Mendoza in San Juan on December 15, 1961. They spent the night as guests at La Fortaleza, the Governor’s Mansion which is the oldest Executive Mansion in continuous use in the Western Hemisphere. The guest bedroom in which he stayed subsequently became known as the "Kennedy Bedroom.”

I wanted to acknowledge this event to honor my Puerto Rican heritage and use this fun fact as a segue to talk about my update of my interest in the Kennedys, my future goals related to honoring them next year both through travels and social media, and possible ideas and future projects I may end up undertaking.

For the past three years, I have been commemorating the 60th anniversary of John F. Kennedy's time as the thirty-fifth President of the United States. I began by collecting books about the Kennedy Family, which as of two nights ago, has now gone up to ninety-nine books. On December 13, I was given the night off from work, so I decided to go to the movies in downtown Boston for a rerelease showing of "Oppenheimer," which is a biographical film on J. Robert Oppenheimer, which chronicles the story of his role in the development of the atomic bomb.         

Before I went into the movie theater, I went for a bite to eat in a food court at the Corner Mall in Downtown Crossing. From there, I went to the nearby Brattle Bookshop and went to browse for books at a low cost. It was there I found a copy of “Kennedy Justice” by Victor S. Navasky for only three dollars.

I purchased it at once before heading to the theater to see "Oppenheimer." After viewing the film, I knew it would about an hour before I would arrive home by public transportation, so I read the introduction and first chapter of the book during my return journey. I have not made time to read the rest of it due to my busy work schedule, but it is now a part of my collection and I hope to make time to read it. 

This means that for all of 2023, I have a total of eight new acquisitions to my Kennedy Book Collection. They are:

• “1961 Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: John F. Kennedy”
• “1962 Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: John F. Kennedy”
• “1963 Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: John F. Kennedy”
• “Robert Kennedy & His Times” by Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr. Volumes 1 & 2
• “The First Kennedys: The Humble Roots of an American Dynasty” by Neal Thompson
• “Kennedy or Nixon: Does It Make Any Difference?” by Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr.
• “Kennedy Justice” by Victor S. Navasky 

Despite now owning about ninety-nine books on the Kennedys, I still wish to own more. However, due to a limited space and a limited budget, I am unable to do so at this time. There are so many books I want to own and display in my Kennedy Book Collection, but for now they will simply have to remain as wishes until something happens. The hunger to own more is still there, but I will spare the reader from listing all the books I would like to own.

This past year alone, I also visited places in Massachusetts that were of significance to the Kennedy Family (some of which for the very first time), including six cemeteries (where JFK's family and acquaintances are laid to rest, three places of birth (for himself, his mother Rose, and three of his siblings), two schools he attended, two restaurants (he frequented regularly), two places of worship (one turned in housing facility and the other a place where he voted), two former campaign headquarters (both in Boston), two buildings JFK occupied (Bellevue Hotel for his 1946 congressional campaign and 122 Bowdoin Street his official "home" residence) and two trips to the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum.

I regret that I still have not visited Hyannis as of yet. This is where there are other sites of significance to the Kennedy Family. In that area, I would like to visit:

• The Kennedy Compound, where the homes of Joseph P. Kennedy and two of his sons, Jack and Bobby, are located and served as headquarters and homebase for the family.
• John F. Kennedy Hyannis Museum, located at 397 Main Street, which showed the Kennedys’ deep connection to Cape Cod.
• St. Francis Xavier Church, located at 347 South Street, where Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy regularly attended mass, President John F. Kennedy attended Sunday Mass here with his family during the summertime, and the site of the funeral mass for Eunice Kennedy Shriver.
• The Hyannis Armory, located at 225 South Street, the site of John F. Kennedy’s presidential acceptance speech on November 9, 1960.
• John F. Kennedy Memorial, located at 670 Ocean Street in Veterans Memorial Park on Veterans Beach overlooking Lewis Bay. 

I would also like on embark on "The Kennedy Legacy Trail" which is a self-guided 1.6-mile "walking tour of sites in downtown Hyannis, Cape Cod that are significant to the Kennedy family."

Since I visited the final resting places of Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr. (September 6, 1888 – November 18, 1969), Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy (July 22, 1890 – January 22, 1995), and their daughter Rosemary (September 13, 1918 – January 7, 2005) at Holyhood Cemetery in Brookline this past summer, it has made me want to also St. Francis Xavier Cemetery, located in Pine Street, in Centerville, Massachusetts (2.9 miles west from the John F. Kennedy Hyannis Museum), to visit the final resting place of their other daughter Eunice Kennedy Shriver (July 10, 1921 – August 11, 2009) and son-in-law R. Sargent Shriver (November 9, 1915 – January 18, 2011). 

Speaking of final resting places, I hope to also visit Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia, where six members of the Kennedy Family are laid to rest. 

They were:

• John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), 35th President of the United States from January 20, 1961, until his death. He was laid to rest on November 25, 1963, and then moved to a spot just 20 feet east from its original interment site on March 14, 1967.
• Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis (July 28, 1929 – May 19, 1994), First Lady of the United States from 1961 until her husband's death in 1963. She was laid to rest on May 23, 1994, next to her husband.
• Patrick Bouvier Kennedy (August 7, 1963 – August 9, 1963), last child of President John F. Kennedy and First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy. He was originally buried at Holyhood Cemetery in Brookline, Massachusetts.
• Arabella Kennedy (August 23, 1956) Stillborn.
• Robert Francis Kennedy (November 20, 1925 – June 6, 1968), 64th United States Attorney General from 1961 to September 1964, and as Unites States Senator from New York from January 1965 until his assassination in 1968.
• Edward Moore Kennedy (February 22, 1932 – August 25, 2009) United States Senator from Massachusetts for almost 47 years, from 1962 until his death in 2009.

I would also like to visit the final resting places of Patricia Helen Kennedy Lawford (May 6, 1924 – September 17, 2006) located at Southampton Cemetery in New York and that of Kathleen “Kick” Kennedy Cavendish, Marchioness of Hartington (February 20, 1920 – May 13, 1948), located at St Peter's Churchyard, Edensor, England. While visiting the latter might not be feasible at the moment, visiting the former would be doable with some careful planning.

As a matter of fact, while researching on where Stephen Edward Smith (September 24, 1927 – August 19, 1990), President's Kennedy's brother-in-law and Jean's husband, was laid to rest, I found that he was located at Most Holy Trinity Catholic Cemetery.in East Hampton, Suffolk County, New York; 12.6 miles east from where Patricia is laid to rest. In the same burial grounds as Mr. Smith maybe located, I found that the relatives of Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis are also buried there. 

In the Bouvier Family Plot are:

• John Vernou Bouvier, Jr. (August 12, 1866 – January 15, 1948), stockbroker for Wall Street and attorney in New York. He was grandfather of Mrs. Onassis.
• Maude Frances Sergeant (July 9, 1890 – April 2, 1940), wife of John Vernou Bouvier Jr. and grandmother of Mrs. Onassis.
• Edith Ewing Bouvier Beale (April 28, 1895 – October 8, 1929) daughter of John Vernou Bouvier Jr. and Maude Frances Sergeant; aunt of Mrs. Onassis. She was known as “Big Edie” and was the subject of a 1975 documentary called “Grey Gardens,” about how she and her daughter lived in poverty despite their upper-class upbringing.
• Michelle Caroline Bouvier (August 4, 1905 – January 1987), daughter of John Vernou Bouvier Jr. and Maude Frances Sergeant; aunt of Mrs. Onassis; twice married and twice divorced.
• William Sergeant “Bud” Bouvier (October 5, 1895 – February 5, 1977, son of John Vernou Bouvier Jr. and Maude Frances Sergeant; graduate of Yale University, uncle of Mrs. Onassis who died two months and eleven days after she was born.
• Michel Bouvier (January 29, 1920 – July 16, 1994) son of William Sergeant “Bud” Bouvier and first cousin of Mrs. Onassis.
• John Vernou "Black Jack" Bouvier III (May 19, 1891 – August 3, 1957) a stockbroker on Wall Street stockbroker, the father of Mrs. Onassis and father-in-law of John F. Kennedy.  He married Janet Norton Lee in 1928, but divorced in 1940 due to his drinking, gambling, and philandering. In the late 1950’s, he was diagnosed with terminal liver cancer and died at the age of 66. 
• Lee Bouvier Radziwiłł (March 3, 1933 – February 15, 2019), who according to Wikipedia was a “socialite, public relations executive, and interior decorator. She was the younger sister of Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis and sister-in-law of President John F. Kennedy.” She was married and divorced three times. She passed away at the age of eighty-five, outliving her older sister by 24 years, 8 months, and 27 days. As per her wishes, part of her ashes was scattered on the Amalfi Coast in the Mediterranean Sea and the other half was buried in this plot at Most Holy Trinity Catholic Cemetery.

Indeed, I would like to visit all of the final resting places of all the Kennedy siblings, as well as the Bouvier Clan buried in New York. 

In addition to this, I would also like to visit the final resting places of all the officials who served in the Kennedy Administration. This includes then Vice President (and 36th President of the United States) Lyndon Baines Johnson (August 27, 1908 – January 22, 1973), ten cabinet secretaries, two postmaster generals, two Special Assistant Counsels to the President, ten Special Assistant to the President, one Deputy Special Assistant to the President, one Staff Assistant to the President, three Administrative Assistants to the President, one press secretary, three Military Aides to the President, and one private secretary to President Kennedy. There is a list of these public servants that has been generously provided on the JFK Library Website called "Officials of the Kennedy Administration" and it will serve as a foundation for who to look for in my future travels. 

I am aware that this would be an ambitious feat, but I believe it can be done. I just need to make time, plan accordingly and find the right opportunities to make the journeys to these places to honor these people for their services to President Kennedy and the country and perhaps tell their stories.

I have to acknowledge that as of typing this journal blog entry, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. is now running as an independent candidate for President of the United States. While I have been involved in political campaigns in the past, I have decided not to participate in any of them for this year and for the foreseeable future. My involvement and endorsement of any candidate would taint any projects I would undertake, and I would be judged not for my content, but for my political beliefs. With this in mind, I am withdrawing from any participation, involvement, and/or endorsement of any presidential candidates. I think Elvis Presley had the right idea when in a press conference a reporter asked him for his opinion of war protesters and if he would refuse to be drafted. He replied, “Honey I just I just tend to keep my own personal views about that to myself. I'm just an entertainer and I’d rather not say.”

Speaking of Elvis Presley, I have been gleaning inspiration from watching videos of Elvis fans and enthusiast share their love through showing their collections of memorabilia, travels to either his birthplace in Tupelo, Mississippi and/or to his home at Graceland in Memphis, Tennessee where he is laid to rest. Some notable fans that I was inspired by were people like Mary Patricia, Sophialoveselvis, Ashley's Adventures, Those Elvis Girls, Elvis Archival Preservation Society (EAP Society), and many others. While I am not a fan of Elvis, I appreciate his contribution to the world of music, his impact on popular culture, and for the fact that still he inspires people today long after he passed into history. It was through these creators that made me appreciate Elvis and they have inspired me to want to do the same for President John F. Kennedy. 

This past year, I have made friends with people who love the Kennedy Family on Instagram and was invited to a private Kennedy Group Chat within the website, in which we share our collections, artwork, and mutual interests with each other. Interacting with them has also inspired me to take an interest in continuing to travel to more places significant to the Kennedy Family, which I have listed here, and to share with them and perhaps publicly through YouTube by creating content in a part documentary/video blog hybrid style. I don't know if I have the tools as of yet, but the potential to build and create is there. We'll see how this year turns out. In the meantime, to cite President Bill Clinton's memoirs: "...deep down I probably felt as Abraham Lincoln did when he wrote as a young man, 'I will study and get ready, and perhaps my chance will come.'” I will do the same. 

To conclude this blog entry, I wanted to use remarks that President John F. Kennedy made upon his arrival at International Airport at San Juan, Puerto Rico on December 15, 1961. I visited Puerto Rico before in the summer or 2007 when I was twenty years old and stayed with my relatives. I did see La Fortaleza, the Governor's Mansion where President and Mrs. Kennedy spent the same night of their arrival on the island though I never went inside. I hope to visit there again to try and retrace the steps that he made during his visit. Perhaps this time, I might be able to go inside and (with permission) see where President and Mrs. Kennedy stood in the receiving line and maybe view the bedroom where they stayed the night before departing the next day. I know that it is a long shot and highly unlikely, but I can make a request through official channels. If there is no response or if my request is denied, then I will have to be satisfied that I tried my best. 

With some deliberation, I have to share the entirety of President Kennedy's remarks to close this blog entry, though I may use them again for when I revisit Puerto Rico in the near future. Anyway, this is what he said in which he referred to Luis Muñoz Marín (1898-1980), who would serve as Governor of Puerto Rico for a total of sixteen years after being elected four times from 1949 to 1965:

"Governor:

It is a great experience to fly many hundreds of miles over the Atlantic Ocean to come to an island and be greeted in Spanish, to come to an island which has an entirely different tradition and history, which is made up of people of an entirely different cultural origin than on the mainland of the United States, and still be able to feel that I am in my country, here in this city and island, as I was in my country in Washington this morning.

And I'm particularly appreciative and glad that I've been welcomed by you, Governor. What you and your devoted associates and the people of this island have been able to do in the last decade, to build a better life, to tackle the difficult problems of education, and housing, and employment, and all the rest, has given us inspiration to feel that we can carry on a great cooperative effort throughout the entire hemisphere. And I think it most appropriate that the man who served under you in this great enterprise, Ambassador Ted Moscoso, who was our Ambassador to Venezuela, should now be the Director of the Alliance for Progress and be able to hold up encouragement to people everywhere in this hemisphere by pointing to what has been done on this island. And also, another devoted public servant from this island, Arturo Morales-Carrion, who is now our Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Latin America.

Puerto Rico serves as an admirable bridge between Latin America and North America. You have, I think, served to make it easier for us to understand each other, and therefore it is most important and appropriate that we should start this journey to two great countries, Venezuela and Colombia, that we should come here first.

I want to express the thanks of all of us to you--you welcomed our Peace Corps representatives and gave them training which I think has contributed to their success.

We come here today, and I will value your counsel, and I'm sure as a result of our stay here that our journeys tomorrow and Sunday will be more fruitful.

Governor, I'm grateful to you, and I am grateful to your people. We have many of them on the mainland, and they are among our best citizens--and I'm glad to be in America this afternoon."