The question: The Durango Herald asked people Thursday on Main Avenue to share their memories of Nov. 22, 1963, the day President John F. Kennedy was assassinated.

“Oh yeah, I remember watching it. I was at a baby sitter’s house. My baby sitter was in tears. It was a big day, but I was only 5 at the time, black-and-white TV. I also think the media, year after year – you know, it was such a big event – they play it so it helps you remember the event.”

– Mike Malone, in elementary school at the time

“I was 8, and I was at a friend’s house. We were shocked and sad. We lived outside of the country, but the news spread among the people who lived there. We were in Mexico City. My dad worked for Kraft foods.”

– Cindy Chavez, in elementary school at the time

“I was in junior high, in North Carolina. It was horrible. We were pretty young, but it was still a horrible thing. I can’t remember what we were talking about, but I can certainly remember it was just like, everything we were doing stopped. The class basically came to a halt.”

– Jack Stuart, in junior high at the time

“I was washing dishes. That wasn’t very exciting. But from then on, for three days, I did nothing else but watch the television. I cried for three days and long after. I still do when it’s brought up. He was very important in my life.”

– Dorothy Newell, 29 at the time

“I was in high school, I think I was about 14 years old. In fact, I think I was in class, electronics lab. Just shock, absolute shock. It was devastating. Especially at that age, I had never gone through a presidential assassination before. It was just a rarity, just unheard of.”

– Bo Pruski, in high school at the time

“I think I was in third or fourth grade. I was only 8 years old, so it didn’t have much of an effect on me. My parents were devastated. I remember my father coming in from work and my mother just in hysterics about it, and you know, for me being little, it was just kinda like, ‘What happened? What happened?’”

– Suzi Loether, in elementary school at the time