Jenyce Gush was a teenager skipping school in Dallas in 1963.
On November 22, 1963, a friend and I decided to skip school.
I was 15 years old, going to Rusk Junior High.
The whole city came alive.
It was the most exciting thing Id ever seen.
And then there they were the president and the first lady in an open Lincoln limousine.
I was in awe.
This was the Camelot era.
There had never been a president likeJohn F. Kennedyor a first lady like Jackie.
I was surprised to see them in an open car, that there was no bulletproof bubble.
But mostly I was thinking about how attractive he was.
He had on a pinstriped shirt, and he had these bushy eyebrows.
I looked at Jackie, who was the epitome of beauty, with lipstick that matched her pink suit.
She was yelling, They shot him!
I thought she was talking about someone she knew, a family member or something.
They shot the president!
No, no, I said.
We just saw him.
I went into Skillerns Drug Store and saw people huddled around a TV.
I thought,This cant be happening.
For days, it was all anyone could talk about.
It was such a dark time for the whole world.
My mother had previously worked as a waitress for Jack Ruby, at the Carousel Club.
Within a short period of time, the FBI showed up at our door.
I answered, and there were these two agents with badges.
I panicked, shut the door in their faces and ran to get my mother, who was asleep.
The FBI is here!
Did yall kill the president?
Somehow, my young mind had made that leap.
Of course, she had nothing to do with it.
Looking back, it was something you never dreamed could happen, and certainly not in your own hometown.
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