Originally published by the Voice of America (www.voanews.com).
Voice of America is funded by the US Federal Government and content it
exclusively produces is in the public domain.
August 11, 2009

Eunice Kennedy Shriver Dead at 88
---------------------------------

http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=25EC62D:A6F02AD83191E160FC5678DB3370596B70AD7039DCD7B7E4&
 
Former president's sister and founder of Special Olympics movement died
in Massachusetts hospital 
Eunice Kennedy Shriver (File photo)Eunice Kennedy Shriver, sister of the
late U.S. President John F.
Kennedy and founder of the Special Olympics movement, has died at the
age of 88. The family says Shriver died early Tuesday in a
hospital near her home in the seaside town of Hyannis, in the eastern
state of Massachusetts. Shriver, who belonged to a powerful political
dynasty, had suffered a series of strokes. She
founded the Special Olympics in 1968, an athletic event for mentally
disabled children which is now held in more than 150 countries. The
move was inspired, in part, by her mentally disabled sister Rosemary.
The organization said in a statement that Shriver "changed the world for
the better like few others in history." A family statement said her life
taught what it means to live a "faith-driven life of love and service to
others." Her
brother Senator Edward Kennedy, who has been a leading liberal in
Congress since 1962 and is battling brain cancer, said Shriver deeply
understood a Kennedy clan lesson - "that much is expected of those to
whom much has been given." President Barack Obama praised
Shriver as "an extraordinary woman" who taught the world that "no
physical or mental barrier can restrain the power of the human
spirit".Shriver's
eight siblings also included the late Senator Robert F. Kennedy, who
was slain while campaigning for president in 1968.Shriver's husband,
five children and 19 grandchildren were by her side when she passed away
Tuesday. Her
husband R. Sargent Shriver was the first director of the U.S. Peace
Corps and a 1972 vice presidential candidate. Her daughter Maria, a
former U.S. television journalist, is married to California Governor
Arnold Schwarzenegger. Some information for this report was provided by
AFP, AP and Reuters.


.