Richard K. Donahue

Richard King Donahue (20 July 1927 in Lowell, Massachusetts - 15 September 2015 in Lowell, Massachusetts) was an American lawyer and former aide to President John F. Kennedy.

Early life
Richard was born in Lowell, Massachusetts on July 20, 1927 to Joseph P. and Dorothy F. Donahue. He also had two brothers (Daniel and Joseph) and a sister (Margaret).

Military service
He served in the United States Navy during World War II. He was discharged in 1946.

Education
He received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Dartmouth College in 1948 and his Bachelor of Laws degree from Boston University in 1951.

Law career
Upon being admitted to the Massachusetts Bar, he worked at the family law firm as a trial attorney focusing on criminal and civil defense. He was a highly skilled trial lawyer and became known for his proficient cross examinations. Based on peer review he was admitted as a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers in 1970. All the while he remained active in the Democratic Party and the Greater Lowell community.

In September 1963, he returned to Lowell to resume his law career at Donahue & Donahue, one of the premier law firms in the Commonwealth founded by his grandfather, Daniel J. Donahue.

Political career
He first met Jack Kennedy in 1952, during a political luncheon at the Rex in Lowell, when the third-term congressman was running for the U.S. Senate.

A friend and protégé of Larry O’Brien and Kenny O’Donnell, he became a key player in the grass roots organizing of John F. Kennedy’s campaigns for the U.S. Senate and President.

He went on to serve as a delegate for Massachusetts during the 1960 Democratic National Convention in Los Angeles. Following the election he was instructed by the President-elect to help Kenny O’Donnell form the staff of the new administration.

Governmental career
He served as Assistant to the President in the White House from 1960 to 1963 acting as liaison between the White House and Congress. He worked alongside Lawrence F. O’Brien, Jr., Kenneth P. O’Donnell, Charles U. Daly, David F. Powers and Ralph A. Dungan – a group more commonly known as Kennedy’s Irish Mafia -- or “Murphia,” as Jackie Kennedy was known to quip.

Later life
In 1977 Senator Edward M. Kennedy charged him with heading the Massachusetts Judgeship Selection Committee which was responsible for filling four vacant spots in the federal judiciary.

Then in 1980, Senator Kennedy again called on him this time to revive his flagging presidential campaign by assuming the leadership role for the New York state primary.

His role of managing Kennedy's successful New York primary upset of President Jimmy Carter was summed up best by Donahue “I came here in a cab. I’m going out in a limousine.”

In 1984, he became a Founding Board Member of the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation, the non-profit organization created to provide financial support, staffing, and creative resources for the federally operated John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum. A major contributor to the foundation, he served as vice chairman of the Board for 29 years.