Another Solder

Gentle Reader,

Another solder has been lost down but not out. Another Irish man who has by his attitude and effort has tried  to increased the American way of life. Scripture says 1Co 15:26 The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death. But for now death has taken another solder. Many will come forward to eulogize or denigrate Edward Kennedy. But in true Irish fashion I want to share with you a wee bit of what The Irish Kennedys meant to this their adopted county. We can trace their history back to the Fitzgerald family was from western Ireland in the rural County Limerick village of Bruff .

Sometime between 1846 and 1855 some of the Fitzgeralds migrated to America because of the devastating potato famine. Thomas Fitzgerald, born in Bruff in 1823, and Rose Anna Cox, born in County Cavan in 1835 were the parents of John Francis Fitzgerald, who was born in Boston, MA on February 11, 1863. On September 18, 1889, John Francis ("Honey Fitz") Fitzgerald married Mary Josephine Hannon of Acton, MA, daughter of Michael Hannon and Mary Ann Fitzgerald, both of whom were born in Ireland. Their daughter, and John F. Kennedy’s mother, Rose Elizabeth Fitzgerald, was born on July 22, 1890 in Boston, MA.

During the same period that the Fitzgeralds migrated to America, Patrick Kennedy, a cooper, left his ancestral home in Dunganstown, County Wexford and sailed from New Ross for the United States. In 1849 he married Bridget Murphy [born about 1827 in Owenduff, County Wexford] in East Boston. Nine years later she was a widow with four small children, the youngest of whom, Patrick Joseph Kennedy, would become John F. Kennedy’s grandfather. In November, 1887, Patrick Joseph ("P.J.") Kennedy married Mary Augusta Hickey, daughter of James Hickey of Cork, Ireland, ( Our stomping grounds) and Margaret M. Field, also of Ireland. Their son, and John F. Kennedy’s father, Joseph Patrick Kennedy, was born on September 6, 1888 in East Boston. Teddy as he was known said about himself " I grew up in a large Irish Catholic family as the youngest of nine children. By their words, their actions, and their love, our parents instilled in all of us the importance of the ties that bind us together – our faith, our family, and our love of this great country."

Edward M. Kennedy was the third longest-serving member of the United States Senate in American history. Voters of Massachusetts elected him to the Senate nine times—a record matched by only one other Senator.

The scholar Thomas Mann said his time in the Senate was "an amazing and endurable presence. You want to go back to the 19th century to find parallels, but you won’t find parallels."

President Obama has described his breathtaking span of accomplishment: "For five decades, virtually every major piece of legislation to advance the civil rights, health, and economic well being of the American people bore his name and resulted from his efforts."

He fought for and won so many great battles—on voting rights, education, immigration reform, the minimum wage, national service, the nation’s first major legislation to combat AIDS, and equality for minorities, women, the disabled and gay Americans.

He called health care "the cause of my life," and succeeded in bringing quality and affordable health care for countless Americans, including children, seniors and Americans with disabilities. Until the end he was working tirelessly to achieve historic national health reform. He was an opponent of the Vietnam War and an early champion of the war’s refugees. He was a powerful yet lonely voice from the beginning against the invasion of Iraq. He stood for human rights abroad—from Chile to the former Soviet Union – and was a leader in the cause of poverty relief for the poorest nations of Africa and the world. He believed in a strong national defense and he also unceasingly pursued and advanced the work of nuclear arms control.

He was the conscience of his party, and also the Senate’s greatest master of forging compromise with the other party. Known as the "Lion of the Senate," Senator Kennedy was widely respected on both sides of the aisle for his commitment to progress and his ability to legislate.

Senator Kennedy was Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee. Previously he was Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and served on that committee for many years. He also served on the Senate Armed Services Committee and the Congressional Joint Economic Committee. He was a leader of the Congressional Friends of Ireland and helped lead the way toward peace on that island.

He was a graduate of Harvard University and the University of Virginia Law School. He lived in Hyannis Port, Massachusetts, with his wife Vicki. He is survived by her and their five children Kara, Edward Jr., and Patrick Kennedy, and Curran and Caroline Raclin, and his sister Jean Kennedy Smith.

But Gentle reader, if you have ever meet an Irish man you will know that beneath the skin there beat a heart of a humanitarian one who feels what the lowliest of us feels and strongly enough to do something about it. I have felt that way about the causes that I fought for. Because it has been said , perhaps only in Ireland, that "when the last Irishman dies the heart of Christ will have been used up"!

 Dear Rev. Dr. Denis & Marti,

Michelle and I were heartbroken to learn this morning of the death of our dear friend, Senator Ted Kennedy.

For nearly five decades, virtually every major piece of legislation to advance the civil rights, health and economic well-being of the American people bore his name and resulted from his efforts.

His ideas and ideals are stamped on scores of laws and reflected in millions of lives -- in seniors who know new dignity; in families that know new opportunity; in children who know education's promise; and in all who can pursue their dream in an America that is more equal and more just, including me.

In the United States Senate, I can think of no one who engendered greater respect or affection from members of both sides of the aisle. His seriousness of purpose was perpetually matched by humility, warmth and good cheer. He battled passionately on the Senate floor for the causes that he held dear, and yet still maintained warm friendships across party lines. And that's one reason he became not only one of the greatest senators of our time, but one of the most accomplished Americans ever to serve our democracy.

I personally valued his wise counsel in the Senate, where, regardless of the swirl of events, he always had time for a new colleague. I cherished his confidence and momentous support in my race for the Presidency. And even as he waged a valiant struggle with a mortal illness, I've benefited as President from his encouragement and wisdom.

His fight gave us the opportunity we were denied when his brothers John and Robert were taken from us: the blessing of time to say thank you and goodbye. The outpouring of love, gratitude and fond memories to which we've all borne witness is a testament to the way this singular figure in American history touched so many lives.

For America, he was a defender of a dream. For his family, he was a guardian. Our hearts and prayers go out to them today -- to his wonderful wife, Vicki, his children Ted Jr., Patrick and Kara, his grandchildren and his extended family.

Today, our country mourns. We say goodbye to a friend and a true leader who challenged us all to live out our noblest values. And we give thanks for his memory, which inspires us still.

 Pray for us,

Sincerely,

President Barack Obama