By Peter Goonan, The Republican
on November 22, 2013 at 3:27 PM, updated November 25, 2013 at 11:21 AM
SPRINGFIELD — The memory of President John F. Kennedy lived on Friday during a ceremony at the Eternal Flame at Forest Park, with residents and dignitaries recalling him on the 50th anniversary of his assassination as a great leader, as an inspiration to millions and as “that good-looking fellow, too.”
Approximately 200 people attended the annual ceremony, including William Marot, formerly of Springfield and Wilbraham, who traveled from his new home in Oregon to once again attend.
Marot said he has missed just “a couple” of ceremonies since the monument was created in Springfield in 1964, and has served as co-chairman of the event. Anyone who thought he was not going to be at the ceremony this year, marking the 50th anniversary was “crazy,” he said, noting that he lived in New Hampshire for 18 years before Oregon, still coming to Springfield each year.
Another special guest at the ceremony was Marc A. Jacques, a Springfield native, who was representing the Canadian government in his role as academic and economic affairs officer for the Consulate General of Canada. Jacques presented a framed photo of Kennedy and then-Canadian Prime Minister Lester Pearson and their wives, taken before Kennedy made a speech before the Canadian Parliament speaking of the special bond between the two neighboring countries.
But the ceremony was also about the many residents who said they continue to have a great sense of loss as a result of Kennedy’s assassination on Nov. 22, 1963.
Germaine Senecal, 83, of Springfield, began to cry as she recalled Kennedy in comments just before the ceremony.
“I just loved him,” Senecal said. “He was such a good president. “It stuck with me, what he did, the leadership. He was a good-looking fellow, too.”
Speakers included Mayor Domenic J. Sarno, U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal, former Mayor Charles V. Ryan and Hampden County Sheriff Michael Ashe.
Congressman Richard E. Neal reflects on President John F. Kennedy , on the 50th anniversary of his death. Neal attended a remembrance ceremony at the eternal flame located in Forest Park.
Neal said Kennedy was “an inspiration to millions who drew on his life” and that it is extraordinary that his memory still has a grip on society 50 years after his death. Neal said he was also inspired by Kennedy and that he remembers being at Buckingham School when he and classmates learned that Kennedy was shot, and the “sense of unreality” felt that day.
Sarno said Kennedy was “forever young, and always held in reverence” and knows how “beloved and respected he was in the world.”
Sarno also praised the crowd that gathered at Forest Park, and remains strong in honoring Kennedy each year.
“He connected with us,” Sarno said. “We felt like he was in our living room.”
Ralph Cardaropoli, 80, of Springfield, said he comes to the remembrance ceremony almost every year.
“He was somebody I admired very much,” Cardaropoli said. “I just feel things would be a lot better today if he had lived and completed the things he was planning to do.”
Ronald LeBlanc, 65, of Springfield, said he is a daily walker at Forest Park, but was coming to his first remembrance ceremony.
“Especially for Massachusetts, everybody loved John Kennedy,” LeBlanc said. “It was a tragedy.”
The ceremony included the laying of a rose and wreath and the playing of Taps, along with the singing of the national anthem and "God Bless America." The Eternal Flame for Kennedy is only one of two in the United States, with the other at Kennedy's Arlington National Cemetery burial site.
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