Who are Joan Kennedy’s children? All about family as Ted Kennedy’s ex-wife dies at 89

American socialite, author, model, pianist, and advocate Joan Kennedy, 89, passed away at her home in Boston on October 8, 2025. The cause of death was not immediately known. She was the first wife of the late Senator Edward M. Kennedy, better known as Ted Kennedy Sr.

The news was confirmed to CNN by Steve Kerrigan, the chair of the Massachusetts Democratic Party and a spokesperson for her son, Patrick J. Kennedy.

Joan Bennett Kennedy is survived by her two sons, Edward Jr. and Patrick, her nine grandchildren, and several nephews and nieces. She also had a daughter named Kara, who died in 2011 from a heart attack.

In the wake of Joan’s demise, her youngest child and second son, Patrick Kennedy, shared in a statement with CNN:

“Besides being a loving mother, talented musician, and instrumental partner to my father as he launched his successful political career, Mom was a force of example to millions of people with mental health conditions,” Patrick stated.

The former U.S. Representative of Rhode Island continued:

“She will be missed not just by the entire Kennedy Family, but by the arts community in the City of Boston and the many people whose lives she touched.”

Likewise, Joan Kennedy’s elder son, Edward Jr. Kennedy, told the outlet that he will always “admire” his mother for the way she faced up to her

“challenges with grace, courage, humility, and honesty.”

Ted Jr. added, “She taught me how to be more truthful with myself and how careful listening is a more powerful communication skill than public speaking.”

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Everything you need to know about Joan Kennedy’s children

Joan Kennedy and Ted Kennedy Sr.’s eldest child and only daughter was Kara Anne Kennedy, who was born in February 1960 in Bronxville, New York. She was a filmmaker and TV producer, and also served on the boards of various charities, including the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation, dedicated to her uncle and former/ late President Kennedy.

Kara married architect and real estate developer Michael Allen in 1990 and got divorced in 2001. The mother of two was a lung cancer survivor. However, she died from a heart attack at a health club in Washington, D.C., in September 2011, aged 51.

Ted Sr. and Joan Kennedy’s middle child and eldest son was Edward M. Kennedy Jr. He was born in September 1961 in Boston. Ted Jr. is a lawyer and politician who served as a Connecticut Senator between 2015 and 2019. Later, he became a partner at the NYC-based legal firm, Epstein Becker & Green.

The 64-year-old has been married to Kiki Gershman since 1993 and has two children. Gershman is a professor at the Yale School of Medicine as well as an environmental advocate. Ted Jr. got one of his legs amputated as a kid after being diagnosed with bone cancer. He is now the chairman of the board of directors of the American Association of People with Disabilities.

Joan Kennedy gave birth to her second son and youngest child, Patrick Kennedy, in Boston in July 1967. He is a retired politician and mental health advocate. Patrick served as the U.S. Representative for Rhode Island between 1995 and 2011 and on the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.

Patrick was also appointed as a member of the Opioid and Drug Abuse Commission in 2017 by President Donald Trump. He has been married to an educator, mental health advocate, and former New Jersey politician named Amy Savell since 2011. They have two sons and two daughters.

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Joan Kennedy was born Virginia Joan Bennett in September 1936 in Bronxville, New York. She was a teen model and a classically trained pianist. In 1957, Bennett Kennedy crossed paths with Ted Sr. when she came to visit his sister and Joan’s friend, Jean Kennedy, at Manhattanville College during a building dedication ceremony.

Joan and Ted Kennedy Sr. exchanged wedding vows a year later. However, their marriage was marked by cheating scandals, the Chappaquiddick accident, family tragedies, and her own battle with alcoholism and depression.

According to CNN, Joan Kennedy had miscarriages during her marriage to Ted Sr. While she stood by him through several controversies, the couple later separated in 1978 and divorced in 1982. Edward Kennedy Sr. died from a brain tumor in August 2009, aged 77.