Jimmy Carter: A Life of Service
President Jimmy Carter, the oldest living U.S. president, turns 100 today. Arguably America’s most successful one term president, Carter dedicated his life to service. Service in the United States Navy, graduating from the Naval Academy in 1946 and working in the submarine services during the years immediately following the end of the Second World War. Service for his home state of Georgia, in which he served as a U.S. Senator and Governor of Georgia after reviving his family’s peanut-growing business. And then service as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. What followed were decades of diplomatic and humanitarian work. An evangelical Christian, Carter has always believed in service in the name of Jesus Christ. He crafted his career as a testament to his commitment to serving humanity, all as a reflection of his Christian faith.
James Earl Carter Jr. was born on October 1, 1924 in Plains, Georgia. The son of a World War I-era veteran who served stateside in the Georgia National Guard, Carter grew up as the eldest of four children. His family made a hard living as peanut farmers. Although his father was a pro-segregationists, Carter still developed friendships with many of the black farmhands’ children, perhaps influencing his views on Civil Rights throughout his career.
He was a fine student who dreamed of attending the United States Naval Academy. Carter’s dreams became a reality. It was there that he met his wife of over 70 years, Rosalynn Smith. He graduated in 1946, and married Rosalynn soon afterwards. Carter launched a promising naval career that ended abruptly in 1953. The unexpected death of Carter’s father that year changed the course of the young man’s life. Carter felt obligated to return home to Plains, Georgia and take the reigns as the family’s patriarch.
Life was hard for Carter, making the transition from the Navy to life as a agribusinessman. Great sacrifices were made in order to stay afloat, including taking classes and studying agriculture, while his wife did her best to help Carter with the peanut business. Over time, the Carters succeeded in growing their business into a successful brand.
Carter began his political career with a desire to help the local African American community. Racial tension was high in the years that followed the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court decision. Carter was a staunch integrationist, but recognized the unpopularity and trouble that would follow him for vocalizing his beliefs within the deep, American South. He was careful not to offend his segregationist colleagues. Despite his appeal to racism at times throughout his rise up the political ranks in Georgia, Carter ultimately believed strongly in civil rights and racial equality. When Carter was sworn in as the 76th governor of Georgia, he declared in a speech in 1971 that "the time for racial discrimination is over" to the dismay of several within the crowd and many segregationists who supported his campaign. But Carter was serious about Civil Rights. He added several black state employees and paid tribute to black icons like Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., which angered the local Ku Klux Klan.
Ineligible for reelection, Carter set his sights on the White House. In 1976, Jimmy Carter was a political outsider. This image of Carter as an everyday Joe helped him during the post-Watergate era. Voters were looking for a candidate who they could relate to. President Gerald Ford gave a valiant effort with his campaign. However, Carter was able to narrowly edge him out for the presidency.
One of the first actions taken by President Carter was the fulfillment of a campaign promise by issuing an executive order declaring unconditional amnesty for Vietnam War-era draft evaders, Prolamation 4483. Inflation, an economic recession, and the 1979 energy crisis were all serious domestic problems that Carter faced during his time in the White House. However, the Iranian Hostage Crisis would prove to be his greatest challenge. This, coupled with the Soviet Union’s invasion of Afghanistan, ultimately contributed to his defeat against Ronald Reagan in the 1980 presidential election. Probably the crowning achievement of the Carter presidency was the Camp David Accords in 1978, which ended the war between Israel and Egypt. This event highlighted Carter’s abilities as a skilled diplomat, and briefly inspired confidence in his efforts within the Middle East.
After leaving the White House in 1981, Carter became more of a diplomat, traveling across the globe and visiting with world leaders on behalf of succeeding American presidential administrations. Carter has also been a champion of human rights. His humanitarian efforts include hurricane relief projects after major natural disasters such as hurricanes Katrina and Harvey, as well as the creation of the Carter Center in Atlanta, Georgia. The Carter Center is a non-governmental and non-profit organization, with the purpose of advancing human rights and alleviating human suffering. These themes speak to his evangelical Christian faith, which also expresses itself in Carter’s public and controversial criticism of Israel over its policies in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Despite being attacked as an anti-Semite, Carter has not shied away from his belief that Israel’s policies are the primary cause of conflict in the Middle East. Nevertheless, Carter will go down as one of the most successful ex-presidents of all time.
Despite health scares, including a cancer diagnosis in 2015 and injuries associated with his older age in recent years, Jimmy Carter is still taking things one day at a time after entering hospice care in 2023. After 77 years of marriage, Rosalynn died later that year. Now the oldest living former president and longest-lived president in American History, Carter can say that he has made the commitment to not only his country, but to all of humanity. I had the pleasure of shaking his hand back in 2017, while working at the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library. It’s powerful knowing that I’ve crossed paths with arguably one of the greatest public servants in American presidential history. A man who believed in public service throughout his illustrious career. A man who still believes, to this day, in service all in the name of Jesus Christ.
