Over Winter Break, on December 29th, former US President Jimmy Carter died at 100 years old. He died in Plains, Georgia, the same place he was born 100 years ago, on October 1st, 1924. Let’s look back at what he accomplished in his long life.
James Earl Carter had a humble childhood, growing up on a peanut farm. He was a bright kid and was motivated by his hardworking and loving parents. After graduating high school, and with a determination to serve in WWII, he studied at Georgia Institute of Technology for a year before transferring to the United States Naval Academy.
While on leave, Jimmy Carter met Rosalynn Smith and they married in July, 1946. Rosalynn died in 2023 at the age of 96 and at the end of a loving and highly admired 77 year marriage. Together, they had three sons and one daughter and, on their own accounts, Jimmy and Rosalynn have remarked that their relationship was their greatest accomplishment. “Rosalynn was my equal partner in everything I ever accomplished,” Jimmy Carter once wrote, “As long as Rosalynn was in the world, I always knew somebody loved and supported me.”
Following his father’s death in 1953, Carter resigned from the Navy and returned to his family farm, which was facing heavy challenges. Despite a difficult drought and the boycotting of his farm by many people of Plains, Georgia due to Carter’s refusal to oppose the new status quo of integration under Brown V. Board of Education, he brought the farm to prosperity by 1959.
From that point on, Carter’s community engagement continued to increase, first by working as a church deacon and Sunday school teacher, later having a seat on the Georgia State Senate, and eventually becoming governor of Georgia. As governor, his main concern was remedying the outdated bureaucracy, and he received national attention for calling an end to segregation, and he also focused largely on the environment and education.
In 1977, Jimmy Carter became the 39th President of the United States. During his presidency, he achieved many things including an increase of 8 million jobs, a decrease in the budget deficit, expanding the national park system, including the protection of 103 million acres of Alaskan land, and creating the Department of Education.
Despite his accomplishments, there are many aspects of his administration that were unsuccessful and he only served one term. However, he will remain well known for his championing of human rights, having received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002 for his work to find solutions to international conflict, advance democracy and human rights, and promote economic and social development. Because of his humility, his genuineness, and his fervor for progression in the fields of education, the environment, and human rights, the nation will continue to remember Jimmy Carter as one of the best people who has served as President.
