What Did JFK Do For His Country? by Emery

What Did JFK Do For His Country? by Emery - October 2017 Scholarship Essay

If I could have dinner with a President of my choosing, it would have to be John F. Kennedy. Kennedy was such a visionary in his field and he revolutionized a lot about what we characterize politics with today. In my mind, he is a President of grace and sophistication. The type of leader that always seems to know a way around things and do it in style.

People may have heard of the “I cannot tell a lie” myth that involved Washington and the ill-fated cherry tree. In real life, if it had been Kennedy, in his seven-year-old self, who chopped down that same tree, he would have grown out his nose tenfold. When he was a child in Massachusetts, he led a life that most schoolkids today could relate to. He didn’t cared much about school, as he would rather joke around and get himself into deep water. Since his family was very affluent, they easily invested in Kennedy’s Ivy League education. That still didn’t change his attitude toward school and it wasn’t until the brink of the Second World War that an epiphany moment came to him that made him wake up and take charge of the world he was inheriting. That time, he wrote his senior essay for Harvard, entitled Why England Slept. Nothing would have been the same again.

I do not want to sound cliché, but the fact that he was the youngest elected President in history is quite impressive. He was only in his early forties and he averted arguably the most turbulent crisis in world history. That is one of the things that I admire in Kennedy. He is always cautious about the decisions he makes in his policies and knows how to negotiate the good end of the stick. Above all, he has made clear his desire to instill civic duty among his fellow citizens. His legacy remains strong with the continuation of his Peace Corps program, which has employed more than 225,000 volunteers in over 140 countries.

When I read about his life, I am always reminded of the resilience the human heart has to offer. I am also reminded of the many obstacles he has faced at such a young and brief life. He is a symbol of the ideals I believe young people today hold and want to see realized. Among other icons of social and political change, Kennedy was a man who wouldn’t back down and a man of great integrity. Has he made mistakes in his life? Yes, like all of us had at one point or another. He led a playboy lifestyle in his younger days and prided on the pursuit of pleasure and excitement. However, despite his flaws, he remains a very beloved leader, known for his politics as well as his looks.

To this day, he would be ranked among the top Presidents in American history. I honestly wish that there were more people like him who are running our country because they give us hope and reason to believe in a better future. The respect I have for him is immense.