The dream lives on

PERSPECTIVE

What the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate means to my family.

April 03, 2011|By Kara Kennedy

Growing up in my family, public service was part of our everyday life. My father taught me and my siblings that we had a special obligation to help people because we were fortunate in so many ways. It was a value he inherited from his parents and that animated his extraordinary life of service, and one that continues to motivate me and my children today. As much as my father loved campaigning and a robust debate, he saw them as a means to a greater end. To him, politics was a tool for making a difference. He always dreamed of a center that would inspire the next generation of citizens and leaders to make a difference, too. That is why this Friday will be so meaningful for my family and for so many others who were touched by my father: We will be holding the groundbreaking ceremony in Boston for the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate, a place he hoped would become the nation’s preeminent civics education center.

Even as children, my brothers and I recognized how much joy my father got from helping people. He was proud to increase the size of Pell Grants so more students could afford to attend the University of Massachusetts and other colleges. And I’ll never forget our trip to Ethiopia over Christmas 1984. My father was so moved by the immense human need around us that he insisted on spending the night in the desert, helping relief workers feed the hungry.

Each summer, my father would load my brothers, cousins, and me into a Winnebago and take us on historical roadtrips. As we hiked across distant battlefields and trundled through old buildings, he would tell us stories of the issues and personalities that shaped our country. Through these family trips, we came to appreciate that a single person can always make a difference – some may change the course of history, others may improve their communities in smaller ways. What mattered to my father was not the scale of an accomplishment, but that we did our share to make the world better. That we learned we were part of something larger than ourselves.