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Graduates Cum Laude from Harvard University
Born in Brookline MA to a mother who was a stay at home mom and a father who graduated from Harvard business school and became a very successful businessman. In all John or Jack as he was known to his family would wind up with 4 brothers and 3 sisters. Jack was second oldest of the Kennedy children. Their father often encouraged competition between the boys who would make a game out of everything from biking to swimming at their summer home on Cape Cod. -
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JFK life line
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Put in command of PT-109
After joining the Navy at the rank of ensign Kennedy was put in charge of the torpedo boat PT-109. On June 11, 1944 PT-109 was sunk off of the North Solomon Islands by the Japenese Navy. After rescuing him and his crew Kennedy was awarded the Navy&Marine Corps. medal and the Purple Heart. March 1, 1945 he was honorably discharged from the Navy with the full rank of lieutenant. -
Elected representative 11th congressional district in Boston
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Elected senator for Massachusetts
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Nearly fatal back surgery
Durin the sinking of PT-109 Jack had recieved a back injury that required two seperate surgeries to correct. The first surgery was on OCT. 21, 1954 which went rather smoothly. The second surgery went downhill and nearly caused Jack's death. -
Loses democratic bid for VP
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Recieves Dem. bid for U.S. President
Suprised he recieved the bid because, he had been turned down by the democratic party for role as VP -
Beats out Nixon for presidency
After the votes had been counted Jack emerged victorios. However Jack had won by one of the tightest margins in U.S. history winning by only .2 percent of the votes -
Signed bill creating the Peace Corps.
JFK although a decorated war veteran himself w signed in the Peace Corps. to provide mutual understanding between americans and people of other nations. The Peace Corps. will travel to different countries and do whatever volunteer work is needed by the host country. -
Meets with Nikita Khrushchev
Met with the Russian premier named Nikita Krushchev to discuss matters of international importance such as the cold war and nuclear war. They also met to discuss about places like Berlin. Later on Kennedy confirmed that the summitt did not go as well as hoped. Krushchev had taken a very odd stance and when Kennedy had mentioned that a nuclear exchange between the U.S. and Russia would kill 70 million people Krushchev looked at him and said "so what". -
Beginning of the Cuban missile crisis
On this day U.S. surveilance of Cuba found Russian missile silohs being constructed. After learning this information the U.S. prepared for what seemed to be an iminent nuclear war. JFK immediatley placed an embargo around Cuba and prohibited all trade with them. Upon seeing this Russia immediately ceased all trade with Cuba and promised to no longer supply them with weapons. -
Signs in nuclear test ban treaty
This bill signed into affect by JFK said that there shall be no testing of nuclear weapons in outerspace, on land, or in the sea. It was the first act that took steps towards control of nuclear weapons -
Announces plan for global telecommunication system and man on the moon speech
This is system would be the first system of its kind and posed as a great asset to the U.S. Also on this day he announced that before the end of the decade the U.S. would put a man on the moon kicking off the space race. -
Kennedy is assassinated
On this day at 12:30 while riding in an open top limousine through Dallas, texas with his wife Kennedy is shot in the head and chest by a sniper. Americans all over the country mourned the loss of one of the most revolutionary presidents they had seen. VP Lyndon B. Johnson is sworn in on Air Force One.
