Community

Mary and Marlena Hanna, of Aransas Pass, wrote a letter to President John F. Kennedy 57 years ago. They received a reply: a PT boat pin and a photograph of the president. The day the pin and photo arrived in the mail, the flags in town were at half-mast, churches were open for residents to come in and pray, the Episcopal Church was holding a special service, and St. Mary, Star of the Sea announced it would hold a requiem mass. The president had been assassinated Friday, November 22. The mail from the White House came to the Hanna house on Saturday morning, November 23.