Despite numerous health problems, Kennedy joined the U.S. Navy after graduation, and was sent to the South Pacific where he was injured when the patrol torpedo boat he commanded was rammed by an enemy warship. Despite his injuries, Kennedy guided the surviving crew members to safety and was awarded the Navy and Marine Corps Medal and a Purple Heart for his heroism.
Following his military service, Kennedy worked as a reporter for a brief period before successfully running for the U.S. Congress, first serving six years in the House of Representatives (1947 - 1953) and then seven years in the U.S. Senate (1953 - 1960). During his tenure in the senate, while recuperating from back surgery, Kennedy penned his Pulitzer Prize winning book, Profiles in Courage.
The Democratic Party nominated Kennedy as its candidate for President in 1960. He won the election by a small margin, becoming the youngest man elected president and the first Roman Catholic to hold the office. Kennedy was in office less than three years when he was struck down by an assassin's bullet on November 22, 1963.
Highlights of President Kennedy's administration include the:
- Launch of the first American manned spaceflight, Freedom 7.
- Bay of Pigs, an attempt to overthrow Cuban leader Fidel Castro.
- Cuban Missile Crisis, the confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union over nuclear missiles in Cuba.
- Signing of the Limited Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, an agreement between the United States, Great Britain and the Soviet Union to ban nuclear weapons testing in the atmosphere, in space, and underwater.
- Establishment of the Peace Corps.
Mintage:
| Philadelphia | Denver | Proof |
| 6,160,000 | 5,180,000 | 1,272,462 |