Robert F. Kennedy Sr.’s Widow, Ethel, Hospitalized After a Stroke

Robert F. Kennedy Sr.’s widow, Ethel Kennedy, was hospitalized last week after suffering a stroke.

According to her daughter Kerry Kennedy, who shared the news via X on Tuesday, October 8, Ethel, 96, was taken into hospital on Thursday, October 3, after she suffered the stroke, “in her sleep,” that morning.

Kerry’s post started, “I wanted to let you know about my incredible mother,” before detailing how Ethel’s health had played out over the past summer.

“She has had a great summer and transition into fall,” the post continued. “Every day she enjoyed time with her children, nieces, nephews, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. She was able to get out on the water, visit the pier, and enjoy many lunches and dinner with family. It has been a gift to all of us and to her as well.”

Kerry, 65, added that Ethel, the family’s matriarch and mother to Robert F. Kennedy Jr., remains in hospital this week after “receiving treatment.”

The lawyer and human rights activist further detailed, “She is comfortable, she is getting the best care possible, and she is surrounded by family. She is, as you may know, a strong woman who has led a remarkably fulfilling life. We are here looking after her.”

Kerry concluded her post by requesting quiet well wishes for her mother. “Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers,” Kerry wrote. “We ask that you respect our family’s privacy at this time.”

Other members of the Kennedy family, including many of Ethel’s 11 children including Rory Kennedy, and grandson Joe Kennedy III, the son of Joseph P. Kennedy II, shared only slightly varied announcements regarding the news via their own social media channels.

Ethel is the oldest living member of the Kennedy family and shared her children with Robert, a U.S. senator who was assassinated during his run for president in June 1968.

Ethel serves as a human rights activist herself and founded the Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights the same year her husband was killed. The non-profit charity is led by Kerry, who serves as president of the organization.

In 1981, former President Ronald Reagan awarded Ethel the Robert F. Kennedy medal in a ceremony that took place in the White House Rose Garden. It was one of many accolades Ethel has been given over the years, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom she received in 2014.

Also that year, a bridge in Washington, D.C. was renamed as the Ethel Kennedy Bridge to honor Ethel’s unwavering work in advocating for environmental and social causes.