Joe Biden was the 47th Vice President of the United States of America. He served for two terms from 2009 to 2017. A lawyer by profession, Biden served as US Senator for Delaware from 1973 to 2009. He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom with distinction in 2017.

Joseph Robinette Biden was born in Scranton, Pennsylvania in 1942. He worked for time as an attorney before becoming involved in politics. In 1972 Biden was elected United States Senator from Delaware. When he resigned from the Senate in 2009 he had become the longest-serving senator in Delaware history.

Barack Obama chose Biden as his running mate in the 2008 Presidential election. They won the election and Biden became the first person from Delaware and the first Roman Catholic, to serve as Vice President of the United States. Following President Obama re-election as President in 2012 Biden earned a second term as Vice President.

In the November 2020 US Presidential election Joe Biden defeated President Donald Trump. He will be inaugurated as the 46th president of the United States of America on January 20, 2021

Joe Biden, President elect of the United States of America, was born in the year 1942 On This Day.

Photo by marcn

Joe Biden

Jimi Hendrix was a musician, singer and songwriter who was a native of Washington State, USA. Though he had a short career he became one of the most influential musicians in the history of Rock Music. His innovative guitar playing was a feature of his exciting performances.

Johnny Allen Hendrix was born in Seattle, Washington in November 1942. He was of Irish, African American and Cherokee ancestry. He began playing the guitar at the age of 15. By the time he appeared at the Woodstock Festival in 1969 Hendrix was the highest paid performer in the world. ‘The Star Spangled Banner’ was one of his most memorable performances at Woodstock. Hendrix was the headline performer at the Isle of Wight Festival in England in 1970. He died at the age of 27 in Kensington, London on September 18^th 1970.

Jimi Hendrix, musician, singer and songwriter was born in the year 1942 On This Day.

Photo by danorth1

HENDRIX 65 by danorth1 on 2007-11-27 17:45:44

Peadar Kearney who wrote the lyrics of the Soldier’s Song (Amhrán na bhFiann) was a native of Dublin, Ireland. The Soldier’s Song is the Irish National Anthem. Kearney also composed several other songs including, ‘Down by the Glenside’ and ‘The Tri-coloured Ribbon’. He was a founder of the Irish Volunteers and fought in the Easter Rising of 1916.

Peadar Kearney was born on Lower Dorset Street, Dublin on December 12^th 1883. Having left school at age 14, he trained as a house painter. He was a member of the garrison which fought at Jacob’s biscuit factory during the 1916 Easter Rising. He later fought in the War of Independence which ended with signing of the Anglo-Irish Treaty on December on December 6th 1921.

The Anglo-Irish Treaty established Ireland as a self-governing Free State. It was ratified by 64 votes to 57 by Dáil Eireann on January 7th 1922. When those opposed to the Treaty lost the vote, they walked out of parliament led by Éamon de Valera. They took up arms in opposition to the treaty and civil war ensued. Peadar Kearney supported the democratic decision of the people and served under Michael Collins during the Civil War. He was with Michael Collins at Béal na mBláith when Collins was assassinated on August 16th 1922. Following the death of Collins, Kearney abandoned politics and returned to house painting.

Peadar Kearney, who wrote the lyrics of what is now the Irish National Anthem, Amhrán na bhFiann, died at the age of 59 in the year 1942 On This Day.

Ann Dunham was an anthropologist who was the mother of Barack Obama, the 44^th president of the United States of America. As an undergraduate student at the University of Hawaii she met and married Barack H. Obama, Sr. He was a native of Kenya who was a student at the University on a college scholarship. Their son Barack Hussein Obama was born on August 4^th 1961.

Shortly after his son’s birth Obama Sr. was awarded a scholarship to study for a PhD at Harvard University. He moved to Harvard and Ann Dunham raised their son and continued her studies. She was awarded a BA in anthropology by the University of Hawaii on August 6^th 1967. She later studied abroad, particularly in Indonesia where she helped establish a micro-finance programme for small business. She performed doctoral research in Indonesia and was awarded a PhD in anthropology on August 9^th 1992. She died at the age of 52 on November 7^th

Ann Dunham was born in the year 1942 On This Day.

Photo by Raymond June

Ann Dunham (Barack Obama’s Mother) Field Notes by Raymond June on 2012-01-06 19:00:22

Photo by U.S. Embassy Jakarta, Indonesia

Barack Obama with his mother in Hawaii. by U.S. Embassy Jakarta, Indonesia on 2011-11-11 13:31:32

Photo by U.S. Embassy Jakarta, Indonesia

Right-to-left: Barack Obama and Maya Soetoro with their mother Ann and maternal grandfather Stanley Dunham in Hawaii (early 1970s) by U.S. Embassy Jakarta, Indonesia on 2011-11-11 13:32:35