John F. Kennedy

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He served as first chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission and as U.S. ambassador to Great Britain during the administration of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Kennedy's family called him jack. He and his older brother Joe were strong rivals. Jack was quiet and often shy, but held his owns in fights with Joe. "The boys enjoyed playing touch football."(The World Book Encyclopedia, 261). His childhood was full of sports, fun and activity. This all ended when he grew up old enough to leave for school.
Kennedy attended elementary schools in Brookline and Riverdale. "In 1930, when he was 13 years old, his father sent him to the Canterbury School in New Milford, Conn." (The World Book Encyclopedia, 261). One year later, he transferred to Choate Academy in Wallingford, Coon. He graduated from Choate in 1935 at the age of 18. He was promised a trip to London as a graduation gift but he became ill with jaundice and would have to go to the hospital. He spent the rest of the ...

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In late April 1943, he was put in command of a PT 109 in the Solomon Islands in the South Pacific. Kennedy saw action in the form of night patrols and participated in enemy bombings. "On August 1, 1943, during a routine night patrol, a Japanese destroyer collided in the darkness with Kennedy's craft and the PT 109 was sunk." (Falkolf, Lucille - 7). Kennedy heroically swam back and forth rescuing his wounded crew. Two were killed in the crash. The injury once again aggravated his back. Still, Kennedy pushed on swimming from island to island in the South Pacific hoping for a patrol to come by. Kennedy had no idea he had been in the water for eight hours. Finally, an island was spotted that ...

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