Photo: Jimmy Carter accepts the presidential nomination of his party at the Democratic National Convention, August 14, 1980. (Credit: Jimmy Carter Library)
The Georgia Association of Broadcasters joins its fellow Georgians in mourning the loss of former President, and lifelong humanitarian, Jimmy Carter.
Jimmy (James) Earl Carter Jr. was born in Plains, GA on October 1, 1924, to James Earl Carter, Sr., and Lillian Gordy Carter. At the time of his passing, Carter was 100 years old, making him the longest-lived president in U.S. history. Plains honored this milestone by dedicating the 26th annual Plains Peanut Festival to celebrate Carter.
After graduating from the Plains public school system, Carter attended Georgia Southwestern College and the Georgia Institute of Technology. In 1946, Carter received a Bachelor of Science from the United States Naval Academy.
The same year, he married his lifelong love, Rosalynn (Smith) Carter. The two’s union would become the longest marriage in presidential history, 77 years.
Carter rose to lieutenant as a submariner in the Navy. In the spring of 1953, Carter went to Union College after being selected by Admiral Hyman Rickover for an elite nuclear submarine program. In this program, Carter acted as a senior officer for the pre-commissioned USS Seawolf, the country’s second nuclear submarine.
After Carter’s father passed away in July 1953, he made the decision to resign from the military in October in order to take over the family peanut farm.
In his return to Plains, Carter quickly became a figurehead in the community, serving on county boards on education, the hospital authority and the library. In 1962, Carter became a Georgia State Senator and nine years later became Georgia’s 76th Governor.
Carter’s governorship was marked by fighting discrimination, reorganization of the state’s government and reforming the Georgia education system. In 1972, the GAB recognizedCarter as the Georgian of the Year and presented him with the honor at the organization’s annual convention. Additionally, he was the 1974 congressional and gubernatorial elections Democratic National Committee campaign chairman.
Carter began his bid for presidency in December of 1974. On November 2, 1976, Carter became the first, and only, President from Georgia.
As president, Carter deregulated the trucking and airline industries; expanded the National Park system; and created the Department of Education, among other notable achievements. Carter famously helped to bring amity to Israel and Egypt through the Camp David agreement of 1978.
Carter lost his bid for re-election in 1980 to Ronald Reagan. The Iranian Hostage Crisis and inflation in the states contributed to his loss. The 52 American hostages would be released the same day that Carter left office.
After their departure from the White House, Jimmy and Rosalynn would establish the Carter
Center in 1982, in partnership with Emory University. The center focused on the couple’s humanitarian causes, including the eradication of Guinea Worm disease and peacebuilding across the globe.
In 2002, Carter received the Nobel Peace Prize for, “for his decades of untiring effort to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights, and to promote economic and social development.”
For more than 35 years, Jimmy and Rosalynn took part in Habitat for Humanity.
In March of 2023, Carter entered hospice care after a number of hospital stays. In May, the Carter family shared that Rosalynn had dementia, and on Nov. 19, 2023, she passed away.
On Sunday, December 29, Carter passed away at home surrounded by loved ones.
Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter are survived by their four children — Jack, Chip, Jeff and Amy — and 11 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren. A grandson died in 2015.
“The Georgia Association of Broadcasters joins the nation in mourning the passing of President Jimmy Carter. Carter’s service to his community of Plains, the state of Georgia, the United States, and across the globe is reflective of his servant’s spirit and dedication to fellow Americans. The GAB offers our condolences to President Carter’s family, friends, and the Plains community during this time,” says President of the GAB, Randy Gravley.
For more information on the life and passing of 39th President Jimmy Carter, please visit https://www.jimmycartertribute.org/ In lieu of flowers, the Carter family requests that donations are made to the Carter Center.
