Jimmy Carter, an Atlanta churchgoer in a wheelchair, appeared scrawny and carried a blanket with his wife’s face stitched on it. After a short break from hospice care, he had gone to the service.
Carter remained silent, but Rosalynn Carter’s “life well lived” as a mental health and humanitarian advocate transformed ideas of what a contemporary First Lady ought to be, as acknowledged by the couple’s offspring and heirs.
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“My mom was the glue that kept our family together,” their son James “Chip” Carter remarked, placing a hand on his mother’s flower-covered casket and kissing his father’s head.
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre briefed reporters on Air Force One about Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden’s “special moment with President Carter” prior to the service.
Rosalynn Carter rose to prominence in American politics after a seventy-seven-year marriage. On November 19, she went away from her Plains, Georgia, home at the age of 96.
“Beyond love”
When Amy Lynn Carter, their daughter, read aloud a love letter her father sent to her mother three quarters of a century ago when he was serving in the US Navy, she had to fight back tears.
She told the Glenn Memorial Church congregation, “My mother was in love with my father for the majority of her life.”
First Lady Jill Biden sat in the front row of the chapel with her husband, Joe Biden, who had supported Carter before the Democrat’s victory in the 1976 election.
Alongside them were past first ladies Laura Bush, Michelle Obama, and Melania Trump; also, there were former president Bill Clinton and former secretary of state Hillary Clinton, who led the nation from 1993 to 2001.
Favourite John Lennon tunes, including “Imagine,” performed by American country music giants Garth Brooks and Tricia Yearwood, were played during the festivities.
The large attendance at Rosalynn Carter’s events in the United States reflected the high level of respect she commanded.
Rosalynn Carter and her husband gained even more recognition after leaving the White House, thanks to her active advocacy for mental health issues, which were not commonly discussed at the time.
After defeating Jimmy Carter in the 1980 reelection contest, Republican Ronald Reagan all but eliminated him from politics.
Still, the pair gained notoriety for leading a modest life and for starting an international network of charitable endeavours.
“Partner of equal standing”
In an interview, former first lady Chip Carter expressed gratitude to his mother for assisting him in kicking his drug and alcohol addiction and said she made a “positive difference in people’s lives.”
Joe and Jill Biden reportedly gave the Clintons and Michelle Obama a trip on Air Force One, the presidential plane, when they departed early on Tuesday, according to the White House. There were rumours that Melania Trump boarded an additional aeroplane.
Jimmy Carter’s health will undoubtedly be stressed at his more intimate funeral on Wednesday in Plains. Ten months ago, Carter entered hospice care as the oldest living former US president.
All of the recent presidents have attended funerals on a regular basis, but in 2018, President Carter’s visit to the George W. Bush monument in Washington, D.C., sparked a moment of national togetherness.
Observers will closely watch the solemn Carter burial for indications of stress as Biden and Trump are expected to face off again in the 2024 race for the presidency.
The Carters married in 1946, making them the longest-married presidential couple.
In a statement released after her passing, Jimmy Carter referred to her as “my equal partner in everything I ever accomplished.”
Throughout his lengthy political career, Jimmy Carter’s wife made substantial contributions to his campaign. Rosalynn Carter also attempted to elevate the status of the first lady by taking part in cabinet sessions during the 1977–1981 White House administration.
She was a college student in 1945 when she met Jimmy Carter, who was on leave from the US Naval Academy in Annapolis.
Some general FAQs about Jimmy Carter
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