Providence, RI – Eunice Kennedy Shriver, executive vice president of the Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr. Foundation and the founder and honorary chairperson of Special Olympics, received the Rev. Philip A. Smith, O.P. Humanitarian Award from the College president in a special program on Saturday, September 25, 2004. 

As the first recipient of the Rev. Philip A. Smith, O.P. Humanitarian Award, Shriver was recognized for her lifelong commitment to individuals with mental retardation. She has been a leader in the worldwide quest to improve and enhance the lives of the mentally challenged for more than four decades.

“Providence College has enjoyed a rewarding affiliation with Special Olympic for many years,” noted Father Smith. Hundreds of Providence College students have worked with local Special Olympics athletes over the years through the Pastoral Service Organization (PSO) sponsored through the Chaplain’s Office. “We are pleased to recognize Eunice Kennedy Shriver for her inspiring and tireless leadership on behalf of individuals with mental retardation.”

Congressman Patrick Kennedy and local Special Olympics officials, supporters, volunteers and participants attended.

The fifth of nine children of the late Joseph P. and Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy, Shriver is the wife of Sargent Shriver, chairman of the board of Special Olympics, former ambassador to France , and former director of the Peace Corps and the Office of Economic Opportunity. She has served as executive director of the Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr. Foundation since 1957.

Established in 1946, the foundation seeks to prevent mental retardation by identifying its causes and to improve the means by which society deals with citizens who have mental retardation. Under her leadership, the foundation has made undertaken numerous initiatives including the establishment of Special Olympics in 1968; the creation of the President Kennedy Committee on Mental Retardation; the initiation of physical fitness standards and tests for individuals with mental retardation; and changes to Civil Service regulations to allow persons with mental retardation to be hired on the basis of ability rather than test scores.

Shriver’s dedication to the cause of mental retardation has been acknowledged throughout the world. She received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian award, from President Ronald Reagan in 1984. She has received the Laetare Medal of the University of Notre Dame, the Priz de la Couronne Francaise, the Order of the Smile of Polish Children, and, with her husband, was presented the Philip Murray-William Green Award by the AFL-CIO.

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