Jan Sittel and Dr. Betty Duke-Ruhd Living History Program

I first met Dr. Betty Duke-Ruhd and her childhood friend, Jan Sittel, when I spoke at a luncheon of the Plano Retired Teachers Association in Plano, Texas in February 2014. Upon learning that Duke-Ruhd and Sittel had both seen President and Mrs. Kennedy on November 22, 1963, I invited them to record oral histories with the Museum. I was honored to recorded one-on-one interviews back to back on March 24, 2017.

Since that time, both Jan Sittel and Betty Duke-Ruhd have become longtime friends of the Museum. Together, they have participated in three public and educational Living History programs at the Museum, recorded in 2018, 2019 and 2025. This 2019 conversation may also be viewed on the Museum's YouTube channel: Living History with Jan Sittel and Dr. Betty Duke-Ruhd. - Stephen Fagin, Curator  

The Museum's Jan Sittel Collection (2018.021) includes the cardboard sign that she carried at Dallas Love Field on November 22, 1963, which was shared during this educational program. The sign may be found here: Handmade cardboard "All the Way with Jack!" sign welcoming JFK to Love Field – Search sittel (Objects) – Search – The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza. The Jan Sittel Collection also includes the racoon collar coat that she was wearing that day, which was also shared during this program.

Jan Sittel can be seen in several photographs taken at Dallas Love Field, most prominently in this Tom Dillard/Dallas Morning News image: Image of the crowd holding signs and waving flags at Dallas Love Field – Search love field (Objects) – Search – The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza. Looking into the camera, Sittel is center left in this image, holding a sign that reads: "All the way with Jack! Grass Roots Dem."

Sittel's one-on-one oral history, recorded in 2017, may be viewed here: Jan Sittel Oral History – Search sittel (Objects) – Search – The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza. - Stephen Fagin, Curator