The Day Kennedy Died

I looked at my watch. Eleven AM, November 22, 2006. Exactly 44 years ago at that time I was going to a Calculus class. I remember the day and the awful weekend that followed it all too well. My class was over at 12:15. My girlfriend had an 11:00 and 12:30. Her 12:30 was in Old Main next to the computer room. I wanted to see her before I left campus for the weekend but I got back to Old Main from my class too late and missed her. Her class would end about 1:45. I needed to do some work on the computer in the next week so I decided to do it while I waited. While we were working Mr. Gilman, one of the physics professors came in and said, “Kennedy has just been shot in Dallas.” Larry Brown – another student computer geek and I were really into something. Without looking up he said, “don’t joke about that.” I heard Mr. Gilman choke a little and we both looked up. We knew instantly from the look on his face he was not joking. The three of us headed for door. I remember us sorting out who would go first after two of us failed to go through the opening at the same time.

The only room on the upper end of the campus with a TV was the Day Women’s Room. The Day Men’s room had ping pong and card tables, no TV – so much for equality. There was a pressing reason for the TV, the girls had to watch the soap operas. The room was designated for females only, the separation by gender was very strict in that time under the iron hand of Miss Long, Dean of Women. The stories about her were wild and most were at the least near the truth, like the one that she told new female students they shouldn’t wear red dresses on dates because red excites men. One girl asked if it would be better to go on a date without the dress. We ran down the hall, about 40 yards. We stopped at the door, wanting to learn what was happening but realizing we could actually be suspended from school for entering. Mr. Gilman opened the door and told us to go in, the room was full, men, women, professors, students, staff. I saw Dr. Ben Nispel, my advisor crying. For that one awful day Miss Long’s rules were suspended. It wasn’t long till John Cameron Swazey came on and said the president was dead.