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“My most persistent impression as a farm boy was of the earth,” #JimmyCarter wrote. “There was a closeness, almost an immersion, in the sand, loam & red clay that seemed natural & constant.”
After Carter married Rosalynn, the couple built a house in Plains in 1961. They have lived there ever since, except for Carter’s stints in the governor’s mansion in Atlanta & his time in the White House. The home is also from where they launched much of their #humanitarian work.
“But both he & Rosalynn ate right, every single meal. They exercised every single day & made it a priority,” Stuckey said. “They were just regimented in their #health ethic because they wanted to live as long as they possibly could to help as many people as they possibly could.”
In the lead-up to Tuesday’s celebrations, many from near & far were reflecting on Carter’s legacy. Many Black residents recalled how #JimmyCarter helped rebuild what they refer to as “the projects” where many low-income Plains residents reside.
Stanley Lockhart, who is Black & became paralyzed after a swimming accident 15yrs ago, said he has so much admiration for Carter that he would always try to say hello to him. Lockhart would lift his elbow just high enough to signal a wave.
“If I see him, I wave to him & he would wave back,” said Lockhart, 52. “He did a lot of good stuff for us & he was a good man.”
Others were reflecting on how his life & career crossed political lines that now feel etched in stone.
“He brought people together instead of dividing them, unlike some people we know,” said Paula Riley, 64, who lives in Randolph County, GA, & took her family on a tour of #JimmyCarter’s boyhood home on Monday.
April Kirkman, 67, traveled to Plains from California w/her guitar & a song she wrote for the fmr POTUS. The song is titled, “I Wanna Be a Jimmy Carter Kinda Christian.” She said it is meant to praise a past era when #politics & #religion were less divisive.
“Faith, hope, love are what I choose,” the lyrics read. “Yea, yea, a Jimmy Carter kinda Christian. No, no, I ain’t talking ’bout religion. Just wanna walk a mile in those size 11 shoes.”