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She was a sister of U.S. President John F. Kennedy, U.S. Senators Robert F. Kennedy and Edward Kennedy, and U.S. Ambassador to Ireland Jean Kennedy Smith. Shriver was the founder of the Special Olympics , a sports organization for persons with intellectual disabilities.
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After a mishandling during birth and a brutally botched medical procedure, Rosemary Kennedy was compromised for life—but that would inspire her sister to make a difference.
The Special Olympics, which recognizes the athletic potential of people with intellectual disabilities, is one of the most recognizable and respected charitable organizations in the United States. But without the tragedy sustained by a member of the Kennedy family with an intellectual disability, it may never have gotten its start.
Eunice Kennedy Shriver, one of John F. Kennedy’s sisters, founded the Special Olympics. And some of her inspiration came from a less recognized member of the Kennedy family: her older sister Rosemary.
John F. Kennedy Illnesses
Rosemary’s story was tinged with tragedy from the moment of her birth in 1918. During her labor, her mother Rose had opted for a home birth assisted by a doctor and a nurse. But when the doctor arrived late for the delivery, the nurse opted to push the nearly-born baby back into the birth canal, holding her there for two excruciating hours rather than allow the baby to be born without the doctor’s assistance. “I had such confidence in my obstetrician,” recalled Rose later. “I put my faith in God and tried to sublimate my discomfort in expectation of…happiness.”
In reality, the decision to hold the baby inside the birth canal had led to tragedy. The pressure had deprived Rosemary of oxygen and led to seizures, learning delays and symptoms of mental illness.
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Sep 23, 2024 · Shriver, daughter of Rose and Joseph P. Kennedy and sister of Pres. John F. Kennedy and Senators Robert F. Kennedy and Edward M. Kennedy, was close to her developmentally disabled sister, Rosemary. After earning a degree in sociology from Stanford University in 1943, Shriver became a social worker.
- Patricia Bauer
Eunice Kennedy Shriver had a sister, Rosemary, who had an intellectual disability. She and Rosemary grew up playing sports together and with their family. The sisters swam, they sailed, they skiied, they played football together.
Aug 12, 2009 · The founding of the Special Olympics went a long way toward erasing long-held stigmas that the Kennedy family knew well because Eunice had a sister who was mentally disabled.
Aug 11, 2009 · The Shrivers had five children: Robert III, Maria, Timothy, Mark, and Anthony. In 1957, Mrs. Shriver took over the direction of the Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. Foundation, established in 1946 as a memorial to her oldest brother, who had been killed in World War II.
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Eunice Kennedy Shriver. After her brother, John Kennedy, was elected President in 1960, Eunice Kennedy Shriver publicly revealed that they had a sister with mental retardation who had been institutionalized.
