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Quite an assortment of reactions for the same event. I was in 6th grade watching a Thanksgiving play put on by the 5th graders. After the assembly Mrs. Burton, the principal, told us the Kennedy was shot and it appeared that he was dead. We went to our classrooms and went right into math. Some were upset, but most were trying to listen to the lesson because Monday we would be having a quiz on it.

School was let out at the normal time, and when we got home, Mom was washing the refrigerator. When we asked her what she thought, she told us it was a terrible thing, but life will go on.

Life did go on, but TV was screwed up for the whole weekend. I was at my friends house, and left there to go home for lunch. It wasn't until I went back there after lunch did I find the Oswald had been shot.

In hindsight, I can remember the 50's as a calm time. Ike was like any of my uncles. Calm and steady. Even with the "Duck and Cover" drills, I never felt unsure or afraid. I was sure that ducking under my desk would shield me from any blast I could imagine. By 11/63 I was 11 and started to pay attention to the wider world, and maybe that was spurred by various theories about the events of that day. My thoughts on that don't matter to anyone but me, but I've always thought that LBJ had the most to gain.