Lieutenant John F. Kennedy served as commander of the PT109 during World War II. His boat was struck and sunk by a Japanese destroyer, stranding him and his crew in the Solomon Islands. Kennedy carved a message on a coconut shell which was delivered by a native to the PT base a Rendova, and they were all eventually rescued.
The message read: NAURO ISL
COMMANDER...NATIVE KNOWS POS'IT...
HE CAN PILOT...11 ALIVE
NEED SMALL BOAT...KENNEDY
Kennedy later had the coconut shell encased in a clear paperweight, which he kept on his desk in the Oval Office.
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