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Mary Jo Kopechne
Summary
Mary Jo Kopechne (koʊ-ˈpɛkni; July 26, 1940 – July 18 or 19, 1969) was an American secretary, and one of the campaign workers for U.S. Senator Robert F. Kennedy's 1968 presidential campaign, a close team known as the "Boiler Room Girls". In 1969, she asphyxiated when a car driven by U.S. Senator Ted Kennedy left a narrow road on Chappaquiddick Island and overturned into Poucha Pond after leaving a party. According to reports, Kennedy left the party at 11:15 pm. Kopechne's body and the car were not reported until the next morning, approximately nine to ten hours later.
Kopechne was born in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, although she is sometimes described as being from nearby Forty Fort, Pennsylvania. She was the only child of homemaker Gwen (née Jennings) and insurance salesman Joseph Kopechne. Kopechne was of part Polish heritage through her father. Her grandfathers both worked as coal miners in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania. Her family history in the Wyoming Valley area of northeastern Pennsylvania goes back 250 years on her maternal side.
When Kopechne was an infant, her family moved to Berkeley Heights, New Jersey. She was raised Catholic and attended parochial schools. She graduated with a degree in business administration from Caldwell College for Women in 1962.
Kopechne was inspired by President John F. Kennedy's inaugural command "Ask what you can do for your country". After graduation, Kopechne moved to Montgomery, Alabama, for a year at the Mission of St. Jude, which participated in the Civil Rights Movement. She also taught business classes in typing and shorthand at Montgomery Catholic High School, and was an advisor to the school newspaper. One former student recalled her as
"a petite strawberry blonde with pep in her step. She had confidence and a zest for life that was intriguing. ... She was humble and kind, and stood firm in her beliefs. ... Tough, but fun in the classroom, creating speed challenges, expecting accuracy, and rewarding generously."
By 1963, Kopechne relocated to Washington, D.C.
Official source
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