Kennedy and Nixon at 1960 Al Smith Dinner

Pol Light Moment #151 occurred on October 19, 1960, when the two people running for President of the United States shared the stage to support Catholic charities and disadvantaged children. John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon were joint keynote speakers at the 17th Annual Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner in New York in 1960, held at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel. Alfred E. Smith was a former Governor of New York, who was the first Catholic Presidential candidate (Wikipedia Page: Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner).

Both speakers reflected on the election of 1928 when Democrat Al Smith was defeated by Republican Herbert Hoover. You can relive the evening by reading the text of both keynote speakers on the American Presidency Project website. A historical photo of the two speakers was published by the New York Daily Post.

Link to John F. Kennedy's Full Remarks

"When this happens then the bitter memory of 1928 will begin to fade, and all that will remain will be the figure of Al Smith, large against the horizon, true, courageous, and honest, who in the words of the cardinal, served his country well, and having served his country well, nobly served his God. [Applause.]"--John F. Kennedy

Link to Richard Nixon's Full Remarks

"And, so, in conclusion, I would add only this last thought: Many years have passed since the year 1928. Many memories have become less bitter through the years. Three weeks from today either Senator Kennedy or I will be the President-elect of this country, and then we will go our separate courses in the years to come. I've been trying to think how I could best close my remarks and refer to him and refer to me, and I go back to the campaign of 1928. Herbert Hoover was elected. Al Smith lost. But both of them lived many, many years longer, and both of them, the longer they lived, gained love and affection from the American people - and I would only hope tonight that, however this election turns out, Senator Kennedy and I in the years ahead will be able to conduct ourselves with the dignity, the decency which earned the esteem and the love of the American people for the two men who were engaged in that great campaign of 1928."--Richard Nixon

More information about the Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner can be found at http://www.alsmithfoundation.org/thedinner.html#about. For other posts on John F. Kennedy search with the "John F. Kennedy" label at Pol Light. For other posts on Richard Nixon search with the "Richard Nixon" label at Pol Light.

Pol Light does not endorse political candidates. We present a brighter side to politics when they are found on either side of the aisle. We don't have to agree with all of a person's politics to recognize these bright moments.

John F. Kennedy Writes Birthday Letter to Helen Keller

President Kennedy Meets with Helen Keller (1961)

Pol Light Moment #115 happened on June 20, 1963, when John F. Kennedy wrote a letter to Helen Keller on her 83rd birthday.  John F. Kennedy was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961-1963.

Helen Keller was an author, political activist, and lecturer. She was the first blinddeaf person to earn a bachelor's degree. The following is the contents of the letter that John F. Kennedy wrote to Helen Keller on her 83rd birthday.

June 20, 1963

Dear Miss Keller:

It is a pleasure to extend warm congratulations to you on your 83rd birthday.

You are one of the select company of men and women whose achievements have become legendary in their own time.

Your tireless endeavors on behalf of blind people everywhere have gained friends for the United States and the cause of Democracy, and have won for you a permanent place in the history of human progress.

With My Best Wishes,

Sincerely,

John F. Kennedy

Miss Helen Keller
Arcan Ridge
Route 1
Westport, Connecticut

(Source: American Federation for the Blind Website)


John F. Kennedy has been featured on other Pol Light posts. To view all John F. Kennedy posts search with John F. Kennedy label at Pol Light.

Quote Light: John F. Kennedy has a page on the Quote Light blog.

Pol Light does not endorse political candidates. We present a brighter side to politics when they are found on either side of the aisle. We don't have to agree with all of a person's politics to recognize these bright moments.

The photo of John F. Kennedy is in the Public Domain.

John F. Kennedy Writes Sympathy Note to Mother of a Sick Child

John F. Kennedy

Pol Light Moment #98 is when John F. Kennedy wrote a sympathy note to a mother of a sick child on August 9, 1963.  John F. Kennedy was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961-1963.

John F. Kennedy's son Patrick Bouvier Kennedy was born premature on August 7, 1963 and suffered from hyaline membrane disease.  In the early hours of August 9, 1963, with his son Patrick's conditioning worsening, John F. Kennedy went with his friend Dave Powers at 2:00am to the Children's Medical Center in Boston. Prior to seeing his son he stopped to write a sympathy note to a mother whose son had been burned badly and was in the same hospital.

Here is an account by the Washington Post of John F. Kennedy stopping to write a sympathy note to a mother he had never met before.

While waiting for the elevator, his eye wandered into a nearby room, falling on a small child who had been badly burned. JFK summoned the night nurse. He wanted to know how the accident happened. And how often did the mother visit the hospital? When he learned that the mother came every day, the president asked for her name. Taking a slip of paper and a pen from Powers, he scrawled a note of sympathy. “There he was, with his own baby dying downstairs,” Powers recalled in his memoir, “but he had to take the time to write a note to that poor woman, asking her to keep her courage up (Washington Post, October 24, 2013).”

Patrick Bouvier Kennedy died on August 9, 1963 at 4:00am.

John F. Kennedy has been featured on other Pol Light posts. To view all John F. Kennedy posts search with John F. Kennedy label at Pol Light.

Quote Light: John F. Kennedy has a page on the Quote Light blog.

Pol Light does not endorse political candidates. We present a brighter side to politics when they are found on either side of the aisle. We don't have to agree with all of a person's politics to recognize these bright moments.

The photo of John F. Kennedy is in the Public Domain.

John F. Kennedy Pushes Physical Fitness Initiative

Pol Light Moment #72 is when John F. Kennedy announced his U.S. Physical Fitness Program for young people on July 19, 1961, and called for its promotion to public schools as an initiative for the 1961-1962 academic year.  John F. Kennedy was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961-1963.

The entire text of John F. Kennedy's speech on the U.S. Physical Fitness Program can be found on The American Presidency Project Website.

In his speech, John F. Kennedy said, "To members of school boards, school administrators, teachers, the pupils themselves, and their parents, I am directing this urgent call to strengthen all programs which contribute to the physical fitness of our youth (The American Presidency Project Website)."

There is more information on Kennedy's physical fitness initiatives on the John F. Kenndy Presidential Library and Museum Website. John F. Kennedy has been featured on other Pol Light posts. To view all John F. Kennedy posts search with John F. Kennedy label at Pol Light.

Quote Light: John F. Kennedy has a page on the Quote Light blog.

Pol Light does not endorse political candidates. We present a brighter side to politics when they are found on either side of the aisle. We don't have to agree with all of a person's politics to recognize these bright moments.

Photo: The image of the cover of the U.S. Physical Fitness Program was obtained from the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum Website and is used here for informational purposes only.

John F. Kennedy's 'Moon' Speech

Pol Light Moment #47 is when John F. Kennedy set high goals of Space exploration for the United States and gave his 'Moon' speech at Rice University on September 12, 1962. John F. Kennedy was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961-1963.

Here is video footage of the speech that John F. Kennedy gave on his goals for the United States' Space program at Rice Stadium. You can also read the text of it here.

One of the noteworthy lines that Kennedy said in the speech was,

We choose to go to the moon. We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too.

John F. Kennedy has been featured on other Pol Light posts. To view all John F. Kennedy posts search with John F. Kennedy label at Pol Light.

Quote Light: John F. Kennedy has a page on the Quote Light blog.

Pol Light does not endorse political candidates. We present a brighter side to politics when they are found on either side of the aisle. We don't have to agree with all of a person's politics to recognize these bright moments.

The photo of John F. Kennedy is in the Public Domain.

John F. Kennedy Reads the Declaration of Independence

Pol Light Moment #15 occurred on July 4, 1957, when then Senator John F. Kennedy read the Declaration of Independence for a radio program to celebrate the Independence Day holiday. John F. Kennedy was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961-1963.

John F. Kennedy was elected to the United States Senate in 1952. On July 4, 1957, Senator Kennedy read the Declaration of Independence on a program for the Radio Station WQXR to celebrate the United States Independence Day.  A complete transcript of the text of the Declaration of Independence, as it was written on July 4, 1776, is available at the Charters of Freedom Website.

Here is the YouTube video that features the recording of John F. Kennedy reading the Declaration of Independence in 1957.

The reading of the Declaration of Independence by John F. Kennedy was also featured by the New York Times to accompany their publication of the full version of the Declaration of Independence.

John F. Kennedy has been featured on other Pol Light posts. To view all John F. Kennedy posts search with John F. Kennedy label at Pol Light.

Quote Light: John F. Kennedy has a page on the Quote Light blog.

Pol Light does not endorse political candidates. We present a brighter side to politics when they are found on either side of the aisle. We don't have to agree with all of a person's politics to recognize these bright moments.

Photo: The photo of John F. Kennedy is in the Public Domain.