Where were you?

Area residents share their memories of President Kennedy's assassination.

Phyllis Thomure, 18 years old at the time of the assassination

Phyllis Thomure

What were you doing when news of the assassination came?

She was in her bedroom making her bed. She heard it on the TV in the living room, and didn't believe what she heard at first.

What was your reaction to the news?

"[I] Immediately started crying, because it was just such a sad thing to happen, and a sudden, a sudden unexpected thing. And it disrupted my entire day, I can tell you that."

Why did the U.S. take the assassination so hard?

"He was sort of a superstar kind of president. At that time, just, the whole thing, his youth, good-looking, his wife was good-looking, the family was just good-looking, it was just a sort of a story or a fairy tale event with them. I mean, everybody loved him. I think everybody loved him. It was just such a shock to think that anybody, in America, could want to shoot our president. Because everybody loved him, as far as I knew."

Janet Smith, 20 years old at the time of the assassination

Janet Smith

What were you doing when news of the assassination came?

Having just been married, she was living in an apartment in North St. Louis County. She was at home with 2-year-old daughter, watching TV.

What was your reaction to the news?

"It was just unbelievable. And the image that they keep showing, even today, of Jackie going to the back of the car, the trunk area -- that's just so vivid and has never really left my mind. It seems impossible that it was 50 years ago. I kind of lost track of how long ago it had been. But it seems like only yesterday."

Why did the U.S. take the assassination so hard?

"He brought a lot of hope. He was charismatic, he was likable, he was respected, the office was respected, but he also made history because of his religious preference. In my mind, he made history. He broke down barriers that had not been broken before.

The Kennedy family, there was just a mystique about them. And Jackie Kennedy and President Kennedy were welcoming people into their lives. They were approachable and available. And I think the country just had hope that things were going to be better. And that was the day that changed everything."

Faye McCoy, 19 years old at the time of the assassination

Faye McCoy

What were you doing when news of the assassination came?

She was at her mother's house in Sikeston, Mo.

What was your reaction to the news?

"It seemed unreal. We just couldn't believe it. We were all just sitting around the table talking about what was happening."

Why did the U.S. take the assassination so hard?

"We had never seen anything like that. And he was so young. And we watched the babies growing up, they had lost the one baby. To me, it was just like, almost like we knew them. I think it was the first time that they had given so much attention to the first family, and it seemed so personal. And to see him shot and her jumping over to protect him. That's why I think it bothered me so much. It was almost like someone next door that you knew.

I kept thinking he'd be O.K. I really didn't think that he would die. Of course at that time we didn't know how badly he had been injured. I kept thinking, well he can't die, it will be O.K. But it wasn't."

Faye Sandusky, 21 years old at the time of assassination

Faye Sandusky

What were you doing when news of the assassination came?

She heard the news at work at Helen's Cafe in Advance, Mo.

What was your reaction to the news?

"There was so much commotion and emotion in the restaurant, that it just almost shut it down. My greatest fear, even at 21, was just getting home. Cause you know when something like that happens, you automatically, back then especially, assume that a foreign power is going to come at America without the leadership in control."

Why did the U.S. take the assassination so hard?

"We lost something there that I don't think we ever had regained. It was like an innocence, when that happened. It just took a sense of security away from me. That's what I felt. ... When someone could get to our president, that easily, it brought a fear up, and I don't think really in one sense that fear has ever left this country.

Even though he came from a wealthy family, he seemed so down to earth, so easily reachable, and you could just connect with them sometimes. It was like they was for the downtrodden instead of the elite, even though were raised in great wealth. They were so loved. We knew them so well."

Melinda Hilterbrand, 14 years old at the time of the assassination

Melinda Hilterbrand

What were you doing when news of the assassination came?

She was in English class in Sikeston, Mo., and the announcement that the president had been shot was made over the intercom.

What was your reaction to the news?

"We all just started crying. We were all so upset."

Why did the U.S. take the assassination so hard?

"There was such a tremendous respect for the office. I think that we were very respectful also of the first lady. I think now we're so desensitized to things like that happening. Back then we weren't. And it was a very shocking thing for him to be killed."

June Combs, 32 years old at the time of the assassination

June Combs

What were you doing when news of the assassination came?

She was at her kitchen sink and heard the news from her neighbor through the kitchen window.

What was your reaction to the news?

"I didn't think past just the horrible feeling. I did not think how this is going to affect history or anything. It was just sadness."

ashedd@semissourian.com

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