Sen. John F. Kennedy visited Baker City in November of 1959 while exploring a run for president. (File photo).

From Maryalys Urey

Dan Peters’ account of John Kennedy’s visit to Baker when he was considered a very strong candidate for the Democratic nomination triggered my memories of that visit. I was on the platform at the

dinner in the Community Center because my husband, Jack Urey, had been asked to give the invocation. This choice may well have been influenced by Jack’s being the Presbyterian minister here and Kennedy was trying to deflect negative opinions about his being a Catholic.

It was a memorable evening, meeting both John and Jackie. My recollection is that John did not eat when we did he had already eaten at the Baker Hotel where they were staying so that he would be free to speak at any time.

By LISA BRITTON

Dan Peters remembers well the time he met President John F. Kennedy.

Except Kennedy wasn’t president yet Peters met him in November 1959, a year before JFK won the presidential race.

In 1959, Peters was working for the KBKR radio station and Kennedy stopped by for an interview.

andquot;He was a very nice person, and I enjoyed him very much,andquot; Peters said. andquot;In the media, you get to meet these people. Some are nice and some are not so nice.andquot;

Peters worked for KBKR from 1955 to 1961, then later worked for a radio/television station in Pasco, Wash.

But back to that presidential visit to Baker (the town was Baker, not Baker City, at the time).

Peters said Kennedy was testing the waters before announcing his candidacy in the run for president.

Though Peters didn’t meet Jackie she stayed back at the hotel Kennedy showed up with a young man he introduced as his brother.

andquot;It must have been Ted,andquot; Peters said.

The younger Kennedy wasn’t as quick to leave as the future president.

andquot;We did the interview, John left and his brother stayed there for about half an hour picking out music for me to play on the radio,andquot; Peters said. andquot;He had a pretty good taste for music.andquot;

Peters said he always wanted to send a note to Ted Kennedy to ask if he was the one who accompanied JFK to Baker.

andquot;But you hate to bother someone that important,andquot; Peters said.

Kennedy arrived in Baker Nov. 6, and a story in the Nov. 9, 1959, edition of the Democrat-Herald reported the six challenges he spoke about in a speech: population (an increase will bring a classroom shortage), agriculture (decline in farm income), energy (making use of natural resources), standard of living (increase minimum wage), underdeveloped nations (which will turn to Communist example unless the U.S. lends a hand), and nationalism.

The article quotes Kennedy as saying andquot;The secret weapon of our time is not atomic weaponsandquot; but the backing of a desire andquot;by every nation to be free, everyone to be independent.andquot;

Peters, though, doesn’t talk about the political conversation he had with Kennedy. He remembers, with a chuckle, what Kennedy said when he found out Peters had interviewed Hubert Humphrey several weeks before.

andquot;(Kennedy) said ‘did you say hello and he say I’m glad you asked me that’?andquot; Peters recalled.

Humphrey had done just that.

andquot;Then he talked for 15 minutes,andquot; Peters said.

Humphrey lost the Democratic nomination twice in 1952 and 1960. He took office as vice president in 1965 with President Lyndon B. Johnson.

Peters did see Kennedy again during his stint at the station in Pasco, but he didn’t get a chance to interview the president that time.

andquot;But I did go out to Hanford where he was the speaker,andquot; he said. andquot;That was in 1963, just a month or so before he was assassinated.andquot;