Ethel Kennedy Dies at 96

Ethel Kennedy Dies at 96

Ethel Kennedy, the widow of Robert F. Kennedy, has died after suffering a stroke, a family member confirmed to CBS News. She was 96 years old.

 

She had suffered a stroke in her sleep on Oct. 3, her grandson Joe Kennedy III posted on social media earlier this week.

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He described his "incredible grandmother" as a "strong woman who has led a remarkably fulfilling life."

 

NBC News reports:

Born Ethel Skakel on April 11, 1928, in Chicago, Kennedy's life was marked by tragedy even before Sirhan Sirhan made her a widow in 1968 by gunning down her husband while he was running for president.

Kennedy’s parents, coal magnate George Skakel and his wife, Ann Brannack Skakel, were killed in a 1955 plane crash.

Kennedy met her future husband in 1945 at a ski resort in Quebec. At the time, he was dating her older sister, Patricia, according to an official biography at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum.

Five years later, "Bobby and Ethel" were married and their first child, Kathleen, was born on July 4, 1951.

 

Bobby Kennedy was assassinated in Los Angeles in 1968 while he was running for President.

 

Ethel Kennedy never married again.

 

She was a prolific political activist for Democratic causes during her life.