Youngstown woman was in JFK’s circle of friends

YOUNGSTOWN — Catherine Jane Holway’s marriage to Navy Lt. j.g. Leonard Jay Thom on June 1, 1944, brought the Youngstown woman into the circle of close friends of John F. Kennedy, who was to become the 35th president.

It also forever tied her to one of the most famous combat events of World War II, the sinking of patrol torpedo boat 109 and the amazing escape and rescue of its crew, of which her husband-to-be was executive officer and Kennedy was commander.

PT-109 was rammed and sunk by the Japanese destroyer Amagiri about 2:30 a.m. Aug. 1, 1943.

PT-109, along with other PT boats, were in the Blackett Strait, south of Kolombangara in the Solomon Islands in the South Pacific, attempting to sink Japanese supply ships. The Amagiri was an escort ship.

The heroism of the PT-109 crew over the next few days, swimming from island to island to avoid the Japanese, was chronicled in a 1963 movie, “PT-109,” in which actors Cliff Robertson and Ty Hardin played Kennedy and Thom, respectively.

For their heroic actions in leading their crew to avoid capture or death at the hands of the Japanese, and ultimately to safety, Kennedy and Thom received the Navy and Marine Corps Medal for courage and leadership. Also, Kennedy’s injuries qualified him for a Purple Heart.

Thom and Catherine, or Kate as she is known, met at an Ohio State University fraternity party after an OSU-Michigan football game in 1941.

Their story and their connection to the Kennedy family was brought to the attention of The Vindicator by Christopher N. Travers of Youngstown, who works at SofTek Software in the Youngstown Business Incubator. His wife, Patricia Dougan, is an attorney for Community Legal Services.

Read more in Sunday’s Vindicator and Vindy.com