Ethel Kennedy, widow of Sen. Robert F. Kennedy and matriarch of a political dynasty, was remembered Wednesday at a memorial service in Washington by three presidents, star musicians and numerous relatives.
President Biden praised Mrs. Kennedy, who died last Thursday at the age of 96, as “a hero in her own right, a person full of character, full of integrity and empathy, full of true empathy.” An emotional Biden credited her with encouraging him to remain in the Senate after he lost his first wife and young daughter in a car accident in 1972.
“Ethel Kennedy wouldn’t hear any of that,” Biden said at the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle. “The truth is, Ethel helped my family find a way forward, just as she did for our country.”
It was the second service this week for Mrs. Kennedy, who died of complications from a stroke. Her place in American politics was recognized by Democratic Party heavyweights, with speeches given by Biden and two former presidents, Barack Obama and Bill Clinton. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi praised Mrs. Kennedy “both in her official capacity and as my girlfriend.” The civil rights leader’s eldest son, Martin Luther King III, compared Mrs. Kennedy to his mother and said she built “a beautiful bridge to deeper understanding.”
Several of Mrs. Kennedy’s 34 grandchildren spoke of her obsession with tackle football and her love of sailing. Performed by Sting and Stevie Wonder, the latter replacing the chorus of his hit song “Isn’t She Lovely” with “Ethel Is Lovely”.
Mrs. Kennedy was born in Chicago in 1928, married Mr. Kennedy in 1950, and they had 11 children. She was known for her passion for politics and was often described as “more Kennedy than the Kennedys.” After her husband was assassinated in 1968, Mrs. Kennedy devoted her life to her family and advocacy, hosting politicians at her Virginia mansion known as Hickory Hill.
“This was a lesson in how to survive, how to muster the courage to overcome fear for the sake of someone else and a greater purpose, and how to do it with love,” said Kerry Kennedy, the seventh generation. Ta. Mrs. Kennedy’s children.
The memorial brought together families caught up in the election-year news cycle. Kerry Kennedy led a group of relatives in supporting Biden earlier this year, pushing back against her brother Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who ended his presidential campaign in August and endorsed former President Donald J. Trump. I’ve been doing it. (The younger Mr. Kennedy attended the service but did not give a speech.)
Many of the speakers spoke of Mrs. Kennedy’s humor and mischief.
Mr. Biden said he once received a Valentine’s Day card from Mrs. Kennedy that featured a picture of the two of them surrounded by hearts. Mrs. Kennedy said she wrote in the letter, “Valentine, I am not Biden.”
After first worrying that he didn’t have much to add to the line, Mr. Clinton told the Kennedys, “Your mother thought it was a cat meow.”
“She would flirt with me in the most innocent way,” Clinton said.
Mr. Obama recalled a story in which Mrs. Kennedy pushed the influential historian Arthur Schlesinger Jr. and “several Cabinet members” fully clothed into a swimming pool.
“And, of course, there will be a rotating cast of family pets: dogs, horses, chickens, cats, goats, turtles, and rumor has it a hawk, armadillo, and seal,” Obama said. “I don’t know where they kept the seal.”
Mr. Obama recalled the first time he met Mrs. Kennedy after speaking at the Democratic National Convention in Boston in 2004, saying she was “a petite woman with a big smile and twinkling eyes.”
Mr. Obama said that when he tried to use formal language, Mrs. Kennedy cut him off.
“Oh, stop,” Obama recalled her saying. “I know you’re going all over the place. Just enjoy the ride.”
