original story posted August 11, 2009
Eunice Kennedy Shriver, sister of President John Kennedy and the founder or the Special Olympics died today. Shirver was 88.
Born in Brookline, Massachusetts on July 10, 1921, Shriver took her chance to stand out from her siblings John, Robert and Edward Kennedy by establishing the Special Olympics which started in the confines of her backyard back in 1962. What began in the back of the house branched out and exploded into an event that has 3.1 million participants comprised of people with mental disabilities and has created 228 programs in 170 nations, according to the Special Olympics. The first event officially launched in Chicago in 1968.
Shriver has been known for helping the unfortunate outside of this event as she was an advocate for
