Jack Gardo | Kennedy rescuer, 87
Jack Gardo, 87, the last surviving member of the crew that rescued John F. Kennedy from an island in the Pacific Ocean during World War II, died in his sleep Wednesday at his home in Greenville, S.C., said his son Guy Gardo. He said his father had suffered from dementia for six years.
Jack Gardo, 87, the last surviving member of the crew that rescued John F. Kennedy from an island in the Pacific Ocean during World War II, died in his sleep Wednesday at his home in Greenville, S.C., said his son Guy Gardo. He said his father had suffered from dementia for six years.
Mr. Gardo's PT-157 was sent to rescue the survivors of PT-109 after the patrol torpedo boat was rammed in the middle of the night by the Japanese destroyer Amagiri off the Solomon Islands on Aug. 2, 1943. Two crew members were killed; Kennedy, who assumed command of the boat in April of that year, led the survivors to nearby islands until they could be rescued. Mr. Gardo had said he and his crew learned where the survivors were after a native islander arrived with a coconut on which Kennedy had scrawled their location.
Guy Gardo said his father joined the Navy at age 16 after he forged his father's signature. - AP