The 39th president of the United States, James (Jimmy) Earl Carter passed away yesterday at the age of 100. He is now the 6th president to pass during my lifetime, but he is the first president that I remember. He was elected to office defeating Gerald Ford in 1976 by a narrow margin. I’m of similar age to his daughter Amy. I remember reading about Amy’s life in the White House when I was in elementary school. I couldn’t imagine how isolating it must have felt being an only child in the White House as her brothers were all considerably older.

As a child of Republican parents the day Carter was elected was a day of sorrow in my home. “That damn peanut farmer has no business being in the White House,” was a scathing quote my father said before leaving for work. I was confused, he’s a governor and now president, how was he a peanut farmer? When you just turned eight years old there is a lot that is overwhelming and confusing. I did not know what to think. I barely understood why Ford was president. I did not understand why America left so many behind in Vietnam (The helicopters lifting off the embassy roof is my first news memory.) I did not understand the electoral college, nor that politicians held jobs outside of politics before running for office.

I remember so many things during Carter’s presidency, but I did not have a context of historical understanding to put it all into place. My family’s bias was incredibly cruel towards him. I was awestruck by his smile and sincere speaking style. The warmth in his eyes. You could see the love and passion he had for his political and religious beliefs. As I came to discover over the years he was far from perfect, but he stuck to his ideals rather than achieving short term political gains. I’m really looking forward to reading his biography here in the near future to fill in all of the gaps.

Despite my family’s disdain for Presiden Carter, I liked him. As I learned more about our history leading up to his presidency, the struggles of the presidency, and his work during my formative adult years I came to admire him very much. Carter was dealt a bad hand when he entered the oval office. Ford would have had the same hand if the roles were reversed. Economic uncertainty, inflation, Watergate was fresh in everyone’s mind, OPEC was restructuring the oil production in the MidEast and that caused an energy crisis, and then the rise of the Islamic State within Iran that led to the 444 day American Embassy Hostage Crisis. I did not know until my teenage years that the Shah of Iran was a US appointed dictator. I did not understand anti-American sentiment in the Islamic Nations until my 30’s. I would learn about these in my quest to understand neoliberal economic policy in the United States and how it has affected education, and everything else really. It is all sickening really.

All of this craziness happened between my 8th and 12th birthday. I reminiscence and think how simple that time was for me: baseball, mow yards, delivery newspapers, read, baseball, baseball, and baseball. I was so naive. I was for a long time. It is maddening to know the route of crazy from one president to the next when you dig into neoliberal economic policy and politics while everyone else (including the politicians) naively think that this is the right way to do things. I digress… I think Carter did as well as one could do in a world crippled by false premises and scandals.

Since leaving office in 1980, President Carter has had the most active post-presidency of anyone. He was active in peace treaties, election monitoring, Habitat for Humanity, and even teaching Sunday school at his local church. Then he wrote so many books. He was a man on an idealistic mission spree, politics be damned. He wanted a better world for everyone.

Behind that calm exterior and warm facial expression was a fierce warrior of idealism. As I grew as a person the more and more I understood the elegance and power he held with his ideals. When he won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002 he was finally awarded properly for his service to the world. Then he beat cancer. Just wow! What a legend!

In 2019 on a trip home from Florida with my wife and children took a detour and stopped in Plains, GA to see President Carter’s boyhood home and presidential museum. We also drove by his residence, which was surrounded by 12 foot fence with razor wire on the top and cameras and a Secret Service guard shack. What a humble place the 39th president was born, raised, and made a home with his wife Rosalyn and raised a family. It is truly remarkable how a tiny and humble place like Plains raised the 39th president of the United States.

In my other travels I had visited Mt. Vernon, (Washington’s home and tomb,) Lincoln’s Tomb and home in Springfield, IL, Reagan’s Boyhood birthplace and home (Tampico and Dixon, IL,) Eisenhower’s home and tomb (Abilene, KS,) Hoover’s Boyhood home and tomb (West Branch, IA,) Arlington National Cemetery (William Howard Taft’s and John F. Kennedy’s tombs,) Garfield Memorial and Tomb (Cleveland, OH) and 45’s Tower NYC (#45’s NYC Residence.) Carter’s boyhood home and residence is by far the most humbling for me. It lies in huge contrast to garishness and opulence that #45 owns in NYC. Someday, I want to return to Plains, GA and pay my respects to the Carters and their legacy. Their story is an American love story of the ages.

Below you will find some selected photos of this 2019 journey. Photo #1 is President Carter’s Portrait sitting in the main room of his presidential museum (former elementary school.) #2 is the desk in his presidential museum. #3 is the exterior of the museum. #4 is the barn at the boyhood home. It is still an active farm (more low key) with animals and vegetables. The NPS takes care of the property. #5 & #6 is the boyhood bedroom of the 39th President of the United States. #7 I could not resist seeing how my hands measured up to a president. These handprints are at the boyhood home and farm. I was shocked to find we had similar hand size.

Farewell, Mr. President! You had a life of great accomplishment, full of love, and service to fellow man. Thanks for your selfless service to the nation and the people around the globe. You will be missed! One last thing, thanks for being an inspiration to a young boy, and teaching him that ethics and ideals matter more than politics.