Mary Barelli Gallagher, Jacqueline Kennedy’s Secretary, Continues the Season for Weddings…..Part 2
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Super Admin
By Super Admin
Published on 09/5/2007
It was still the season for weddings. Mary Barelli Gallagher became engaged almost as if it was fate, just as her career had been. She met her husband, Ray Gallagher, at the Statler Hotel on August 31, 1954 at the time of the National Convention of the American Legion. Mary wanted to stay in her nice cool apartment that day, but her office friends Katie Griffin and Eleanor Elhajj forced her to go with them to the Statler Hotel.
Mary Barelli Gallagher, Jacqueline Kennedy’s Secretary, Continues the Season for Weddings…..Part 2
Mary Barelli Gallagher, personal secretary to Jacqueline Kennedy, during the John F. Kennedy Administration remembers how Jackie stopped coming to the Senator’s office after their wedding. She was so unlike Ethel Kennedy, the wife of Robert Kennedy, who arrived promptly at 9:00 a.m. on the Hill during Senate Rackets Committee hearings when her husband served as legal counsel. She was always bright and eager for the day with several children around her. Mrs. Gallagher thought it seemed as if Ethel herself were one of the chief counselors!
As a surprise for the Senator, even though Jackie did not appear at his office like she did before, was the tremendous sailfish he caught during their honeymoon at Acapulco. She had the sailfish mounted and delivered to his office. Mary’s remembrance of the mounted sailfish was startling when you first entered the Senator’s office to find it hanging there with its fierce-looking sword. The mounted sailfish later hung in the room opposite the President’s office at the White House in what is called “The Fish Room” since FDR days.
It was not long after their marriage when Mrs. Gallagher and the office staff noticed the then Senator John F. Kennedy coming into the office on crutches. On his desk sat the coconut shell memento of World War II, the one that contained his SOS message, carved by President Kennedy, and delivered by a native after his PT-boat 109 was struck by the Japanese. Even though his back had been injured he still managed to rescue several of his crew. The rescues included an injured man whom the President towed to shore while swimming three miles with the man’s lifejacket belt clenched between his teeth. His military days were not the beginning of his back problems, however, Mrs. Gallagher noted. He suffered a ruptured disk while playing football at Harvard.
The Senator and Jackie lived their first two years of marriage in a rented house that belonged to Blair Childs, on Dent Place, N.W. This house was a typical narrow and quaint Georgetown house that was adequate for two people. The office staff was once invited to a cocktail party there. Mrs. Gallagher recalls how friendly Jackie was as she made her rounds of the room, staying with each group for several minutes to become acquainted. Jackie commented on the pink dress Mrs. Gallagher was wearing and also she liked the bustle effect in the back.
It was still the season for weddings. Mary Barelli Gallagher became engaged almost as if it was fate, just as her career had been. She met her husband, Ray Gallagher, at the Statler Hotel on August 31, 1954 at the time of the National Convention of the American Legion. Mary wanted to stay in her nice cool apartment that day, but her office friends Katie Griffin and Eleanor Elhajj forced her to go with them to the Statler Hotel.
There in the crowded hotel lobby, a man asked to borrow Mary’s pencil to fill in a coupon for a car raffle. This man was Mary’s future husband, Ray. As he told the story later of their meeting, “I only wanted to borrow a pencil. I didn’t expect to end up with the whole girl.”
Mary remembers most about the evening how she never laughed so much in all her life. Ray was nice enough to take the girls home that night. As a return favor, Mary promised Mr. Gallagher that she would translate a letter he mentioned getting from an Italian who had been his shoeshine boy in Italy during the war. It was to Mary’s surprise that there really was an Italian shoeshine boy of whom her husband corresponded with for many years later. Mary and Ray were married in April of 1955.
John F. Kennedy was down with his back again at the time of Mary’s wedding. He and Jackie regretted not being about to attend the wedding. Among Mary’s most treasured possessions was a sterling silver tray she cherished from Mr. and Mrs. John F. Kennedy. Jackie had also written a very complimentary and kind letter to Mary’s mother. Jackie’s words of praise and how much Jack thought of her warmed her mother’s heart.
Mary and Ray Gallagher spent their honeymoon touring New England states. When Mary returned from her honeymoon, the Senator had recuperated in Palm Beach and was back in his office. However, he often wore underneath his clothing a special corset-like support and was almost never completely free of the back pressure. The Senator always had a ready smile for everyone even though he probably was in pain most of the time.
Source: “My Life with Jacqueline Kennedy” by Mary Barelli Gallagher
Written by: Connie Limon For more information about the history of, living, working and visiting Massachusetts, visit http://smalldogs2.com/VisitingMassachusetts For a variety of FREE reprint articles and a special section of articles on U.S. History and the Kennedy Family, visit http://www.camelotarticles.com
This article is FREE to publish with the resource box.
As a surprise for the Senator, even though Jackie did not appear at his office like she did before, was the tremendous sailfish he caught during their honeymoon at Acapulco. She had the sailfish mounted and delivered to his office. Mary’s remembrance of the mounted sailfish was startling when you first entered the Senator’s office to find it hanging there with its fierce-looking sword. The mounted sailfish later hung in the room opposite the President’s office at the White House in what is called “The Fish Room” since FDR days.
It was not long after their marriage when Mrs. Gallagher and the office staff noticed the then Senator John F. Kennedy coming into the office on crutches. On his desk sat the coconut shell memento of World War II, the one that contained his SOS message, carved by President Kennedy, and delivered by a native after his PT-boat 109 was struck by the Japanese. Even though his back had been injured he still managed to rescue several of his crew. The rescues included an injured man whom the President towed to shore while swimming three miles with the man’s lifejacket belt clenched between his teeth. His military days were not the beginning of his back problems, however, Mrs. Gallagher noted. He suffered a ruptured disk while playing football at Harvard.
The Senator and Jackie lived their first two years of marriage in a rented house that belonged to Blair Childs, on Dent Place, N.W. This house was a typical narrow and quaint Georgetown house that was adequate for two people. The office staff was once invited to a cocktail party there. Mrs. Gallagher recalls how friendly Jackie was as she made her rounds of the room, staying with each group for several minutes to become acquainted. Jackie commented on the pink dress Mrs. Gallagher was wearing and also she liked the bustle effect in the back.
It was still the season for weddings. Mary Barelli Gallagher became engaged almost as if it was fate, just as her career had been. She met her husband, Ray Gallagher, at the Statler Hotel on August 31, 1954 at the time of the National Convention of the American Legion. Mary wanted to stay in her nice cool apartment that day, but her office friends Katie Griffin and Eleanor Elhajj forced her to go with them to the Statler Hotel.
There in the crowded hotel lobby, a man asked to borrow Mary’s pencil to fill in a coupon for a car raffle. This man was Mary’s future husband, Ray. As he told the story later of their meeting, “I only wanted to borrow a pencil. I didn’t expect to end up with the whole girl.”
Mary remembers most about the evening how she never laughed so much in all her life. Ray was nice enough to take the girls home that night. As a return favor, Mary promised Mr. Gallagher that she would translate a letter he mentioned getting from an Italian who had been his shoeshine boy in Italy during the war. It was to Mary’s surprise that there really was an Italian shoeshine boy of whom her husband corresponded with for many years later. Mary and Ray were married in April of 1955.
John F. Kennedy was down with his back again at the time of Mary’s wedding. He and Jackie regretted not being about to attend the wedding. Among Mary’s most treasured possessions was a sterling silver tray she cherished from Mr. and Mrs. John F. Kennedy. Jackie had also written a very complimentary and kind letter to Mary’s mother. Jackie’s words of praise and how much Jack thought of her warmed her mother’s heart.
Mary and Ray Gallagher spent their honeymoon touring New England states. When Mary returned from her honeymoon, the Senator had recuperated in Palm Beach and was back in his office. However, he often wore underneath his clothing a special corset-like support and was almost never completely free of the back pressure. The Senator always had a ready smile for everyone even though he probably was in pain most of the time.
Source: “My Life with Jacqueline Kennedy” by Mary Barelli Gallagher
Written by: Connie Limon For more information about the history of, living, working and visiting Massachusetts, visit http://smalldogs2.com/VisitingMassachusetts For a variety of FREE reprint articles and a special section of articles on U.S. History and the Kennedy Family, visit http://www.camelotarticles.com
This article is FREE to publish with the resource box.