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Joan was married to the youngest son of the Kennedy family from 1958 to 1982.
WASHINGTON — Joan Kennedy, the former wife of the late Sen. Ted Kennedy, has died. She was 89.
Steve Kerrigan, chairman of the Massachusetts Democratic Party, confirmed the news of Kennedy’s death in a local obituary. The 89-year-old died peacefully in her sleep at her Boston home on Wednesday, according to the obituary.
The former Joan Bennett was married to the youngest Kennedy son from 1958 to 1982. The two endured a long and troubled marriage marked by family tragedies, her husband’s extramarital affairs and her own struggles with mental health and addiction.
Joan had three children with Kennedy: Kara, Ted. Jr. and Patrick. Kara died in 2011 from a heart attack.
“I will always admire my mother for the way that she faced up to her challenges with grace, courage, humility, and honesty. She taught me how to be more truthful with myself and how careful listening is a more powerful communication skill than public speaking,” Sen. Ted Kennedy, Jr., in a statement.
Joan was one of the first prominent women in the U.S. to acknowledge her struggles with mental health and alcoholism publicly.
“Besides being a loving mother, talented musician, and instrumental partner to my father as he launched his successful political career, Mom was a powerful example to millions of people with mental health conditions. She will be missed not just by the entire Kennedy Family, but by the arts community in the City of Boston and the many people whose lives that she touched,” former Congressman Patrick Kennedy said in a statement.
In 1969, her husband was driving a car that plunged off a bridge on Chappaquiddick Island, killing his young female passenger, Mary Jo Kopechne. Kennedy, who swam to safety and waited hours before alerting police, later pleaded guilty to leaving the scene of an accident. Chappaquiddick shadowed him for the rest of his life, weighing against his own chances of becoming president.
She stood by her husband through the scandal, but their estrangement was nearly impossible to hide by the time of his unsuccessful effort to defeat President Jimmy Carter in the 1980 Democratic primaries.
Joan never remarried after her divorce, but struggled with mental health issues and alcoholism herself for much of her life, including several drunk driving arrests.
In recent years, she has kept a relatively low profile. She engaged with local Boston organizations such as the Boston Symphony Orchestra and the Boston Council for the Arts and Humanities.
“Joan was an accomplished pianist and possessed an impressive knowledge of the classical music repertoire. Her dedication to the Boston Pops Orchestra, and especially to the young people of Boston, will have a lasting impact. She will be greatly missed and will always be regarded as a member of our Boston Symphony Family,” John Williams, Conductor Laureate of the Boston Pops, said in a statement.
She is survived by two children, Ted Kennedy, Jr., and former Congressman Patrick J. Kennedy, nine grandchildren, one great-grandchild, over 30 nieces and nephews, and a sister, Candace McMurrey, of Houston, Texas.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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