KENNEDY: OH! HOW MUCH WE OWE YOU

The time: noon July 15, 1963. The place: Bus stop #15, Sumter, South Carolina.

A young negro mother waits with her 4 year old son. It's hot and very dusty. She does her best to hide from the sun, by extending a worn black umbrella. When the bus arrives, the child leaps through the front entrance and sits on a vacant seat behind the driver. The driver, a middle age white male, stares at the mother with steamy eyes. "Ya'll know betta den dat Mary", he said. "Yes suh", she replies nervously. "Da boy don't mean nothin." With her head bowed, she quickly pays the fare, grabs her son and move to the back of the bus. "Don't you worry none, ya hear me", she whispers to her son. "Mr. Kennedy gonna fix things. It'll git betta by da time you grown", she tells her son.

President John F. Kennedy, we only had you with us for a few years, but you changed so many lives. You renewed our faith in the rule of law, when you stood with the Negro people against discrimination. You made us feel secure, when you stood up against the Soviets during the Missile Crisis. You taught us how to dream, when you promised that America would land a man on the moon, and return him home safely. And above all, you reminded us who Americans really are when you said, "Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country." We owe you so much. How can we ever repay you?

Senator Bobby Kennedy, if only we could have held on to you longer. You were the shortest of your brothers, but your stature could not be measure in height. When Alabama Governor George Wallace vowed to uphold segregation by literally standing in the doorway of the Admissions Office at the University of Alabama, as US Attorney General you had the guts to enforce the law. You confronted him with wisdom and civility. He relented. He stepped aside. Like your brother, you renewed our faith in the rule of law by fighting organized crime and the mafia. And despite the assasination of your brother, Jack, you ran for the presidency. You gave us a glimper of hope again. You made us believe again. How can we ever repay?

Senator Edward M. Kennedy, by the grace of God, you were with us for many, many years. No, you never won the presidency, nevertheless you gave us so much. Two of your brothers--Jack and Bobby--were killed, still you were not detered. You could have lived a full and pampered life among the rich and priviledged. No one would have blamed you if you did. But, this was not in your makeup. You were a man on a mission. A man with a single ambitions, to make life better for the poor.

You showed us how to care, by securing an increase in the minimum wage law for the poor when no one else would try. You taught us compassion by being the prime mover behind the State Children's Health Insurance Program. You showed us courage by creating the Mental Health Parity Act that forced insurance companies to treat mental health payments the same as others with respect to limits reach. You showed us how to be a friend when you stood by President Clinto during the Lewinsky scandal. Time and time again, you showed us how to work with our opponents by passing tons of bipartisan legislation. You gave us so much. How can we repay you?

I think we never can.