Requiscat in pacem, Sarge Shriver

First director of the Peace Corps, Ambassador to France, nominee for Vice-President in 1972, recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Shriver was diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease in 2003.  He was able to attend the inauguration of his son-in-law, Arnold Schwarzenegger, as California governor in the fall of 2003.  

Since then, however, he largely stayed out of public view.  He attended the funeral of his wife, Eunice, in 2009, and the funeral of his brother-in-law, Edward Kennedy, also in 2009.

Shriver was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Clinton in 1994.  President Reagan had conferred the Medal of Freedom on Eunice in 1984.  Sarge and Eunice Shriver are the only husband and wife couple to have both received the honor.

American Idealist, a biography of Shriver, aired on PBS on January 21, 2008.  Excerpt from the New York Times obituary:

As director, he laid the foundations for what arguably became the most lasting accomplishment of the Kennedy presidency. As the Peace Corps approaches its 50th anniversary this year, more than 200,000 Americans have served as corps volunteers in 139 countries.

Break mirrors, Mr. Shriver advised graduating students at Yale in 1994. “Yes, indeed,” he said. “Shatter the glass. In our society that is so self-absorbed, begin to look less at yourself and more at each other. Learn more about the face of your neighbor and less about your own.”

 

Comments

[Hypatia]

RIP to a very decent guy. With his disease I'm sure this was a blessed release for him and his family.