Who is eunice kennedy shriver

Eunice Kennedy Shriver, founder of Special Olympics, was a pioneer in the worldwide struggle for rights and acceptance for people with intellectual disabilities. Her Story. Media Library. What She Learned from the Athletes. In her swimming pool, Eunice learned about guts, courage, change and commitment, lessons provided by the intellectually challenged athletes she invited.

Sports at the Heart. Special Olympics is a sports organization, first and foremost, and needs to remain that, Eunice says. Opportunity, 40 Years On. In the days before Special Olympics, children with intellectual disabilities in the United States were systematically excluded, Eunice says. Today, things are better though challenges remain. Continue Her Mission. Sign the Pledge. EKS is an inspiration to all. Her life is an example for all activities.

Gradually, Rosemary became more difficult to handle, hitting people and smashing things and, on one occasion, attacking her grandmother. Rosemary underwent brain surgery in an effort to make her more calm.

According to Peter Collier and David Horowitz in The Kennedys: An American Drama, the operation did reduce her rage, but it "made her go from being mildly retarded to very retarded. Joe and Rose Kennedy decided to commit their daughter to St. Coletta's, an institution in Wisconsin. Everyone in the family was affected by Rosemary's condition; they all became more aware of the needs of mentally challenged people.

Shriver, in particular, saw that mentally challenged people can often accomplish quite a lot. Shriver was a devoted Catholic and had a strong sense of social justice. When she was 26, she ran a juvenile agency. Later she lived in a West Virginia prison so that she could understand the prisoners' lives. When prisoners were let out on work release, she welcomed them to her home, even after one of them robbed her.

Shriver married R. Sargent Shriver, founder of the Peace Corps and U. He shared her religious views as well as her sense of social responsibility and commitment to helping mentally challenged people. Shriver's brother, President John F.

Kennedy, also had a vision of helping mentally challenged people and their families. In a news conference on October 11, , Kennedy said, "This condition strikes those least able to protect themselves from it.

Whenever possible, the children were committed to institutions. They were segregated from normal society and forgotten, except by members of their family. In June , Shriver and her husband began a summer day camp at Timberlawn, the Rockville, Maryland home that they rented.

The house was a huge Civil War-era mansion with over acres of grounds. For five weeks every summer, 50 to 60 mentally challenged children and adults came to Camp Timberlawn.

The camp had a song, a flag-raising ceremony, and many activities including swimming, baseball, soccer, volleyball, and an obstacle course. All campers had companions, usually teenagers, who helped them with activities and made sure they didn't get hurt. The day camp was so successful in showing that mentally challenged people could benefit from sports and recreational programs, that Shriver, with the help of the Joseph P.

Kennedy Jr. Foundation, decided to expand it throughout the United States. The Kennedy family had created the Joseph P. Foundation in to honor the memory of Shriver's oldest brother, who was killed in a plane crash while serving in World War II.

The foundation aimed to prevent mental retardation and to improve the lives of mentally challenged people. In , Shriver created the Joseph P. Eunice also organized an elegant reception for 1, Irish Catholics to enlist their support, days before the upcoming election. In later campaigns for her brothers and husband, Eunice spent months traveling the country to deliver speeches at luncheons, retirement homes, colleges, fundraisers, and on radio and television programs.

Abbie Rowe. White House Photographs. John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, Boston. Cecil Stoughton. In , Eunice started a summer camp for children with intellectual disabilities on the lawn of her Maryland estate.

Though the wording of this article is now outdated, the article was an important contribution to disability literature. She addressed the prejudices of the general public surrounding people with intellectual disabilities and urged funding for medical research, job training, and group homes.

It has happened in the families of the poor and rich, of governors, senators, Nobel prizewinners, doctors, lawyers, writers, men of genius, presidents of corporations — the President of the United States.

Kennedy Jr. In , nearly , Special Olympics sports competitions were hosted around the world, with more than 5. They are not being conducted just for fun. The Chicago Special Olympics prove a very fundamental fact. That exceptional children But they are only 1, out of one-and-one -half million [children with intellectual disabilities] who should be competing in games like this all over America.

But most of these million-and-one-half children live in communities where there are no games, no exercise, no competition for [those with intellectual disabilities]. In recognition of her tireless efforts to improve and enhance the lives of people with intellectual disabilities, Eunice was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Ronald Reagan in and received a papal knighthood from Pope Benedict XVI in She died on August 11, at the age of In ancient Rome, the gladiators went into the arena with these words on their lips: let me win, but if I cannot win, let me be brave in the attempt.

Today, all of you young athletes are in the arena. Many of you will win. But even more important, I know you will be brave and bring credit to your parents and to your country. Let us begin the Olympics, thank you.

Ralph Alswang, Photographer. Photographs and other Graphic Materials, National Archives. Watching your lifetime of dedication to public service has been a personal inspiration to me and to so many others.