Caroline Kennedy visits church in Hiroshima with bell given by her father decades ago
Nov. 6, 2015
by Kyoko Morioka, Staff Writer
On October 24, Caroline Kennedy, the U.S. ambassador to Japan, visited Japan Evangelical Lutheran Church of Saijo, located in Higashihiroshima City, and saw a bell given by her father, the late U.S. President John F. Kennedy, in 1962. The bell is proof of the ties that her father fostered between Japan and the United States more than 50 years ago. Ms. Kennedy, who now serves as a bridge between the two nations, rang the bell with deep emotion.
The brass bell, located on the second floor of the church, is about 50 centimeters in height and about 40 centimeters in diameter. It bears the imprint USN, which means the U.S. Navy. Children of the kindergarten linked to the church usually ring the bell before the church services.
Ms. Kennedy rang the bell three times with two kindergarten children after being welcomed by a song sung by 65 five- and six-year-olds. When the clear clang of the bell sounded, she commented on its beautiful tone.
According to the church, an American boy named Ricky Lundin learned that there was no bell in the church through a missionary who had been stationed there, and Ricky sent a letter to the White House in 1961. Mr. Kennedy was moved by the boy’s wish to send a bell to the church in Japan “as a message of brotherly love,” and ordered that a bell which had belonged to a retired U.S. Navy destroyer be delivered to Japan in 1962.
Ambassador Kennedy handed to a kindergartener Ricky Lundin’s letter addressed to the White House and the reply made by Ralph A. Dungan, then the special assistant to President Kennedy, as a token of deeper friendship between Japan and the United States. She said that she had been looking forward to visiting this site, and that she was thankful the bell has been used for more than 50 years.
(Originally published on October 25, 2015)
On October 24, Caroline Kennedy, the U.S. ambassador to Japan, visited Japan Evangelical Lutheran Church of Saijo, located in Higashihiroshima City, and saw a bell given by her father, the late U.S. President John F. Kennedy, in 1962. The bell is proof of the ties that her father fostered between Japan and the United States more than 50 years ago. Ms. Kennedy, who now serves as a bridge between the two nations, rang the bell with deep emotion.
The brass bell, located on the second floor of the church, is about 50 centimeters in height and about 40 centimeters in diameter. It bears the imprint USN, which means the U.S. Navy. Children of the kindergarten linked to the church usually ring the bell before the church services.
Ms. Kennedy rang the bell three times with two kindergarten children after being welcomed by a song sung by 65 five- and six-year-olds. When the clear clang of the bell sounded, she commented on its beautiful tone.
According to the church, an American boy named Ricky Lundin learned that there was no bell in the church through a missionary who had been stationed there, and Ricky sent a letter to the White House in 1961. Mr. Kennedy was moved by the boy’s wish to send a bell to the church in Japan “as a message of brotherly love,” and ordered that a bell which had belonged to a retired U.S. Navy destroyer be delivered to Japan in 1962.
Ambassador Kennedy handed to a kindergartener Ricky Lundin’s letter addressed to the White House and the reply made by Ralph A. Dungan, then the special assistant to President Kennedy, as a token of deeper friendship between Japan and the United States. She said that she had been looking forward to visiting this site, and that she was thankful the bell has been used for more than 50 years.
(Originally published on October 25, 2015)
