r/RobertKennedy

he looks like someone you would read about in a novel; stern, commanding yet also kindhearted behind the reserved exterior 💖

and speaking of reading….have there ever been any fictional novels written about the great man himself? asking for a friend 🤭💜

Does anyone have family stories about relatives who met or saw Robert F. Kennedy?

My friend Cliff grew up in Buffalo NY and became an astronomy/physicist who used to work on the Hubble Space Telescope. Earlier this week he told me that once he saw Bobby Kennedy. He managed to narrow it down to August, when he was 14, so it must have happened in 1964 when he was on school break.
Cliff said he and one of his teenaged friends were in Chautauqua, probably attending an educational event there.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chautauqua%2C_New_York

They saw a familiar-looking man walking across the lawn ahead of them. Chautauqua is some way from Buffalo (especially for teens who aren't old enough to drive yet), and not the usual summer hangout for a Kennedy either, so it took them awhile to recognize he was RFK.

I suspect that he might have been there for a different event. I don't know if it would have been election-related. According to Wikipedia, RFK announced he was going to run for the Senate on August 25th, so he might not have been a candidate yet, at that time.

Anyway, Cliff's friend happened to have a football with him, and he handed it to Cliff, saying "the Kennedys like playing football -- quick, toss it to him!"
Cliff's better at math than football, but he did his best. He was horribly embarrassed when the ball fell way short of RFK. He didn't laugh, but smiled and waved at the boys, and continued walking.

When Cliff told me this story, I realized that the youngest people who'd have had memories of meeting Bobby Kennedy are now probably 60 or older. Cliff's going to be 76 next month. I could tell it was a special moment for him, even though he still struggles with footballs. Ironically he had a job later at the stadium, helping with the recording equipment when reporters were interviewing the Buffalo Bills players. He remembers setting up microphones for OJ Simpson (!) and some of the other guys.