JOHNNY I HARDLY KNEW YE III
JULY 15, 2012
“JOHNNY, I HARDLY KNEW YE” III
Knoxville, Tennessee (JFK+50) Today we continue our report of Chapter 12 of the book by Kenneth P. O’Donnell & David F. Powers with Joe McCarthy. It is published by Little, Brown & Company.
The title of Chapter 12 is “Johnny, I Hardly Knew Ye”
Kenneth O’Donnell tells us that after attending MEMORIAL DAY services at Arlington in 1963, JFK began sending a memorial certificate to the nearest surviving relative after the death of a war veteran.
This, Kenny says, was the President’s ‘own idea.’
One widow sent the following letter to JFK after receiving a memorial certificate for her husband:
“I want to thank you for the certificate honoring my husband. It brought tears from the realization that the head of a nation so big could put importance on details so seemingly small. It fills me with an overwhelming love for my country.”