We (my husband Bobby and I) have been flying into Boston’s Logan International Airport for over 20 years. We have seen many renovations to the airport since we started flying together. This includes the hallway that shows the impact of NASA (the National Aeronautics and Space Administration). There is also a huge picture of John F. Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States of America. President Kennedy was a huge proponent of NASA and he is also from Massachusetts.
Part of the display encourages visitors to Boston to go to his Museum and Library. That is something I have wanted to do for years, but never did, until this year.
Bobby and I didn’t have any solid plans about what we were going to do while we were in Boston visiting family. We considered going to Vermont, but decided to hold off on that trip for another year. It wasn’t the snow that kept us away, but it did give us pause. So I suggested instead of heading north, that we go south to the Cape or something. But then I remembered about the museum. Bobby was game, so we decided that was what we would do.
The museum is located on Columbia Point in Boston. That is a peninsula that sticks out in the Boston Harbor. Jacqueline Kennedy (John F. Kennedy’s wife) decided on this location because of Kennedy’s love of the water. The building itself is quite impressive with one side of it completely made of glass that looks out onto the water.
Being born after the Kennedy era, the only thing that I really knew about him was that he was assassinated. My mom and dad (Dolores and Bud) have talked about knowing exactly where they were when they heard the news. (Unfortunately, I can relate because of the 9/11 attacks.) However, the museum gave me the opportunity to learn more about him as a man and as the leader of the free world.
He was very smart and an excellent writer. He wrote a book when he was a Senator titled Profiles In Courage. The book was about eight politicians who Kennedy felt showed extreme courage in standing against their constituents for what they believed was right. He won an Pulitzer Prize for the book in 1957.
He was also a visionary. Not only in the exploration of space, but in the fight against communism and the cold war. It was his administration that started the Peace Corp and a committee to look into helping individuals with intellectual disabilities. He was president during a very tumultuous time in our history where equal rights were on the forefront of political discussions. Not just for people of color but also for women. In addition to all this, Kennedy was on the cutting edge with live televised press conferences. He apparently did them often enough that he averaged one every 16 days of his administration.
The museum contained so much information it was impossible to take it all in. I enjoyed looking at the photographs of JFK and the first lady. It was nice that they even had an area that was dedicated just to Jacqueline so we could get a sense of who she was and what was important to her. (She was a huge advocate of fine arts.)
I liked how the museum was set up. For someone who knew very little about JFK before the visit, I now think I have a small sense of the hope he must have brought to the nation. The museum offers many different opportunities to watch footage of JFK whether it was as he gave his acceptance speech for the Democratic nomination or his inaugural speech or his speeches when he visited Ireland and Germany in 1963 to name a few.
In Berlin, as he stood on a platform overlooking the wall that separated the West from the East he gave an extemporaneous speech that is considered one of his best. As a visitor to the museum, we were able to watch it as if we were watching it on TV. It made his life and presidency come alive for me.
And then there was November 22, 1963. The museum wouldn’t have been complete without dealing with his tragic death. However, I thought they way it was done was tremendously impactful. They have a hall, that is painted black and holds several different monitors that replay the news from that horrible day as well as some footage of the funeral.
Thankfully that wasn’t the end of the museum. The displays after showed the lasting legacy that JFK made to the world. Not only the landing on the moon but Special Olympics, the Green Berets and Navy Seals and so much more. His family speaks of the Profile in Courage award that is inspired by him.
Outside of the museum there is a park with a sidewalk right by the ocean. Bobby and I were able to take some pictures of us with the Boston skyline in the background. While it was a little cool, it was a beautiful day to be by the ocean. There are picnic tables there which we would have used for our packed lunch if it had been a bit warmer.
I’m glad I finally made it to the museum. I was touched much more than I expected to be. One thing that I was surprised by, which in retrospect I probably shouldn’t have been, was the fact that throughout JFK’s speeches his faith in God was evident. As a person of faith, in this time in history, I really appreciated that it wasn’t edited from the displays.
At the end of the museum, you get a chance to sign an electronic guestbook. I made sure to let them know how much I enjoyed my time there.
If you get a chance to come to Boston, I hope you are able to take time to visit the museum. The rich history that it displays will make it possible for you to know our 35th president better.
