Caroline Kennedy Shares Rare Personal Message About Dad JFK

In a post shared to Instagram, Kennedy offered a message of gratitude to the men who once saved her father's life

Asanka Ratnayake/Getty; NY Daily News Archive via Getty

Caroline Kennedy offered a rare and heartfelt message this week about her father, John F. Kennedy, and the men who once saved his life.

Kennedy, 65, currently serves as the U.S. Ambassador to Australia, a role she's held for one year. On Tuesday, Kennedy shared a series of images of her and her son, Jack Schlossberg, on the Solomon Islands just off the Australian coast, along with a poignant caption about the impact the area had on her late father.

"Today, I can't believe I am standing in a place so far from home but so close to my heart," she captioned the image. "This place made President Kennedy the man he was. It is where he first experienced the responsibility of leadership — the knowledge that the lives and safety of his crew depended on him. He risked his own life to save theirs."

The photos show she and Schlossberg walking on the beach and also visiting with a group of Solomon Island men who descended from the men who saved her father during an incident that took place in his World War II naval career.

In August 1943, a Naval ship commanded by Kennedy was struck by a Japanese destroyer, requiring the sailors to swim ashore to the Olasana Island. Two Americans died during the incident and the rest were found and helped by men who lived on the island.

"My father owed his life to their courage, their willingness to put themselves at risk, and to serve their country in the battle for freedom," Kennedy wrote. "Their legacy is the one we honor today. I wouldn’t be here if not for them."

She added that she and her son were able to thank the descendants of those men recently, some 80 years after their ancestors saved her father.

Related: Caroline Kennedy — in a Wetsuit! — Goes Surfing in Rare Casual Outing: 'Fully Embracing Aussie Lifestyle'

"Our lives may be shaped by historical events and the times in which we live, but it is the connections we make to one another that define us and give our lives meaning. It made me want to come here one day though I never imagined it would really happen," she added.Kennedy continued: "Now, Jack and I are here to renew the bond of friendship and to thank you for all that you and your family have done. We will carry this memory with us always and pass down the story that unites us across generations, space and time."

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Kennedy previously served as the U.S. Ambassador to Japan under President Barack Obama, and is one of the most prominent members of her famed political family—if not also one of its more reserved.

She endorsed President Joe Biden early on in his 2020 presidential run and spoke at the Democratic National Convention on his behalf. Biden selected her to serve as the ambassador to Australia in summer 2022.

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