BusyMommy, as a young adult at the time he was killed, it's a special time in history for me - just as you, I and every one else alive in our country will never forget 9/11/2001, I will never forget the day President Kennedy was shot and killed. It was a very scary time. There was much talk of a conspiracy. Several cabinet members were on an overseas flight at the time. We did not have the communication abilities we have now so we did not get instant updates - and much of what we heard was incorrect.
To me, this would be like someone saying in 2051 that they do not understand what all the fuss is about.
So it's not just about President Kennedy, it's about an event in history that left us all shaken. But, yes, Kennedy was special to many people for many reasons.
The Kennedys were glamorous, smart, funny, witty, and CATHOLIC - which was very special for people of the Catholic religion - our only Catholic president so far.
President Kennedy got the ball rolling on civil rights - I know black people who framed pictures of President Kennedy they cut from magazines and hung in their homes, because in many parts of the South he was their hope for freedom to work in well paying jobs, to go to colleges of their choice, to vote, to eat in restaurants and to sit in movie theatres that did not have balconies, to drink at public water fountains, for God's sake. You would have had to have been there to appreciate it and maybe you would not have then but I do.
Hope this helps.