Helping with Setup
Peter Arndt, 72, was one of the crew that built the stage where Kennedy gave his speech. It gave him a chance to get closer to Kennedy than would be possible today.
Jun 04, 2013
Peter Arndt, 72, was one of the crew that built the stage where Kennedy gave his speech. Image Credit: Bernd Wannenmacher
“I was allowed to go everywhere during Kennedy’s visit. As a pipe fitter, I was given a colored pin. Security always let me through when they saw it. But from today’s standpoint especially, the measures were a joke overall. I don’t recall there being any serious checks.
During the speech in Dahlem, I sat on the steel structure we had built for the event, not far away from Kennedy and the professors.
Afterwards, some colleagues and I were curious, so we followed Kennedy into the Henry Ford Building. When we saw him, he had just collapsed. He was lying on a bench, probably in a lot of pain. The president had back problems, you know. At the time, the journalists didn’t catch so much as a hint of it. The university staff members who were there also looked like they didn’t know what to do.”
Read more: Behind the Scenes
About the Witness
Peter Arndt, 72, worked at Freie Universität until 2006. He had started working on campus as a pipe fitter not six months before Kennedy’s visit. He helped to build the imposing stage structure in front of the Henry Ford Building where the U.S. President gave his speech.