Meet FDR

Summer Edition ~ By Lexi

Do you know who was the only four-term president?

If you guessed Franklin Delano Roosevelt, you are right! This interesting man was born in 1882, in Hyde Park, New York. As a child, he collected stamps, birds, and bird eggs. Franklin was an only child, and when he grew bored, he entertained himself by riding his horse. In his early life, Franklin attended Groton, an all boys’ school. There, he tried out for basketball, football, crew, boxing, and High Kick, but most of all he adored giving and attending speeches and debates. Debating is a discussion in which two sides state different points of view. He shared this skill with his cousin, President Theodore Roosevelt!

As a young adult, Franklin studied at Harvard College. He married Eleanor Roosevelt in 1905 and became a lawyer. In 1910, he became a democratic state senator for New York, and then he was elected again in 1912. Soon after, President Woodrow Wilson appointed Franklin as Assistant Secretary of the Navy, and he held this position during World War I. Unfortunately, in 1921 he lost the use of his legs from a terrifying disease named polio. He was only 39 years old when he became ill, and it took a lot of strength and courage to gain back the use of his arms.

The next political position that Franklin Roosevelt held was governor of New York in 1928 and again in 1930. The Great Depression devastated the country while he was in office. During this time, he enjoyed his job so much that his dream was to become President of the United States.
On March 4, 1933, he accomplished that dream! While he was President, his main job was to fight the Depression. His famous quote, “the thing we have to fear is fear itself” inspired people with hope and courage. President Roosevelt passed bills to help farmers and people who were about to lose their homes. He was elected President again in 1936, which was during World War II. He created “fireside chats” to speak with Americans over the radio. These were talks he would have with the American people to tell them what he was doing to fight the Depression. In 1941, the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor and President Roosevelt declared that the United States would enter the war.

Other than fighting the Depression, another success came while he was President for the fourth time. With his great friend, Winston Churchill from England, he established the United Nations. It was President Roosevelt’s dream to have countries work together for peace. This was another dream he achieved!

Sadly, on April 12, 1945, Franklin D. Roosevelt died while getting his portrait painted. Even though he died, we still honor him today. In my opinion, he made the world a better place.

Here is a hyperlink to FDR on The White House website.

Here is a video presentation of my sculpture.

What do you think of President Roosevelt?

What was his greatest achievement?