frontlines
Dallas Memories
on the 50th
Anniversary
Keri Guten Cohen
Story Development Editor
T
hough it's been 50 years since President John F.
Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, like so many, I
can remember exactly where I was when I heard the
news. I was there.
We had moved to Dallas that spring from Milwaukee. I was
about to turn 8 and was full of Texas expectations: a horse
in my backyard, cowboys in slant-heeled boots roaming the
streets, barbecue every day and no snow. None came true.
What I didn't expect was that my new city would become
known for killing a popular president.
I loved John Kennedy. At that age, I was attracted to his hair, his
accent, his beautiful wife and his playful children not much young-
er than I was. I dreamed of what it would be like to live in the
White House. I knew nothing then about his politics or his affairs.
At school, we all were excited Kennedy was coming to our
city. We wanted to watch the motorcade on TV as it made its
way to our downtown, but all we saw in class was his flight
landing at Love Field and a glimpse of the famous couple leav-
ing Air Force One. Jacqueline Kennedy's smart suit and pillbox
hat made an impression on all of us girls. Then the TV was off
and our teacher turned to schoolwork, saying we could watch
everything later on the news.
But at 1:33 p.m., the official death announcement was made,
spreading the news worldwide and eventually to my classroom.
We were stunned. Not in our hometown! We third-graders
cried, even some of the boys, and the teachers harnessed their
emotions to comfort us until school ended.
JN CONTENTS
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•
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The president's motorcade en route to downtown Dallas
I remember being confused as I watched the news unfold on
TV. With all those policemen and Secret Service agents, how
could this happen? My parents, too, were disbelieving.
My father, who loved Kennedy, had braved the crowds at
Love Field to see the famous couple arrive on Air Force One.
He then took back roads to his downtown Dallas office to see
them again. He gave some photos he took of the motorcade
to the FBI. One of his photos (above), with a slightly blurry
presidential car occupied by the Kennedys and Texas Gov. John
Connally and his wife, rests on my bedstand today.
Relatives in Milwaukee called us, all asking the same ques-
tion: "How could you live in such a city?" My new home had a
stain; though faded now, it still remains in the minds of many.
Then Jack Ruby killed Lee Harvey Oswald, the suspected
JFK assassin. Ruby was Jewish; a more personal stain. Ruby's
brother lived a block from us and his children attended our
elementary school. One nephew occasionally caught a ride with
Dallas Memories on page 6
theJEWISHNEWS corn
Nov. 21-27, 2013 I 18-24 Kislev 5774 I Vol. CXLIV, No. 16
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First Night of Chanukah: Wednesday, Nov. 27
Thanksgiving: Thursday, Nov. 28
Shabbat: Friday, Nov. 29, 4:43 p.m.
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Last Night of Chanukah: Wednesday, Dec. 4
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Danny Raskin
Shabbat: Friday, Nov. 22, 4:47 p.m.
Shabbat Ends: Saturday, Nov. 23, 5:50 p.m.
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