Senator will be buried at Arlington, near his slain brothers

8/27/2009

WASHINGTON - Sen. Edward Kennedy will lie in repose today and tomorrow at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston, followed by his funeral Saturday at a city church and burial later that day near his slain brothers at Arlington National Cemetery.

Mr. Kennedy's family plans to travel by motorcade with his body from their compound on Cape Cod, Mass., to the library in Boston today.

The facility will be open to the public for certain periods on both days while Mr. Kennedy lies in repose.

The Kennedys have planned a private memorial service at the library for tomorrow night, according to a schedule of events released by the late senator's office.

On Saturday morning, a funeral Mass will take place at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Basilica - commonly known as the Mission Church - in the Mission Hill neighborhood of Boston. The cavernous basilica on Tremont Street, built in the 1870s, was where Mr. Kennedy prayed daily while his daughter, Kara, successfully battled her own cancer.

"Over time, the Basilica took on special meaning for him as a place of hope and optimism," the family statement said.

President Obama will deliver the eulogy at the Mass.

A burial service at Arlington is scheduled for Saturday afternoon.

Mr. Kennedy, who served in the Senate for almost half a century, will be laid to rest near his brothers, former President John F. Kennedy and former Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, on the famous Virginia hillside that serves as the burial sites of others from the storied clan, including former first lady Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis.

At the site of the eternal flame rest four Kennedy family members: the former president and his wife; their baby son, Patrick, who died after two days; and a stillborn child.

Robert Kennedy's grave is a short distance away and somewhere near it is the most likely site for Edward Kennedy's burial.

Edward Kennedy is eligible for burial at Arlington by virtue of his service in Congress as well as his two years in the Army, 1951 to 1953.