John F. Kennedy

John Fitzgerald Kennedy was born on May 29, 1917 in Brookline, Massachusetts. On January 20, 1961 he was elected the 35th President of the United States of America. Some of the things he is most remembered for are the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Space Race and the Peace Corps. President Kennedy was assassinated on November 22, 1963 by Lee Harvey Oswald. Although John F. Kennedy served as the President for a short time, he was an influential president.
      Kennedy was the second oldest born into a family of nine children. His parents were Joseph Patrick Kennedy and Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy. Kennedy went to Princeton University, but sickness forced him to leave. He went back to Harvard University and graduated. After Kennedy graduated from Harvard, he enlisted in the Navy.
      While in the Navy, JFK was promoted to captain of the PT 109. During WWII Kennedy was in the Solomon Islands in the South Pacific Ocean when the PT boat was hit by a Japanese destroyer boat. The PT boat was split in half and 11 of the 13 men survived (www.encarta.msn.com). JFK got a severe back injury but helped the other men swim to safety. It was even said that JFK held a life jacket in between his teeth (www.encarta.msn.com). The closest island was three miles away from where their ship wrecked. Kennedy was awarded two metals for helping the other men swim to the island when he had a bad back injury. He was awarded the Purple Heart metal and a U.S. Navy and Marine Corps metal.
      In 1953, when Kennedy was 36, he married Jacqueline Bouvier. Together they had four children. The first child was a stillborn girl. Their second child was Caroline, who is still alive, and John (also known as John John) who died in a plane crash a few years ago. Patrick, who was the fourth child, died within two days of his birth.
      John F. Kennedy had other family members in politics. His brothers, Robert Kennedy, Edward Kennedy and Joseph Kennedy were in politics. “When Joe died I decided to go into... [continues]

Read full essay