The late Jimmy Carter
As world leaders continue to mourn Jimmy Carter, the 39th US president who died at 100 years, below are some facts about the man who once served in the Navy, was a Baptist Sunday School teacher, a man of peace, among others.
OLDEST EX-PRESIDENT
Dying at the age of 100 makes Carter the oldest former US President. No ex-president of the United States ever attained such age before their death. Many attribute this longevity to the love he shared among men in spite of party or religious affiliations. He was said to be a man of peace who is at peace with himself, his family and humanity. He was a Nobel Peace Laureate in his lifetime.
LONGEST PRESIDENTIAL MARRIAGE
Carter, a devoted family man, had the longest Presidential marriage. In 1946, around the same time that he had graduated from the Naval Academy, Carter married Eleanor Rosalynn Smith, with the couple having four children and more than 20 grandchildren and great-grandchildren. The Carters hold the current distinction of having the longest marriage of any presidential couple, having been together for about 77 years.
SERVED IN THE NAVY
LONG BEFORE HE BECAME president of the 39th President of the United States, Carter served in the U.S. Navy after graduating with distinction from the Naval Academy in 1946. He served as executive officer, engineering officer, and electronics repair officer on the submarine SSK-When Admiral Hyman G. Rickover (then a captain) started his program to create nuclear-powered submarines, Carter wanted to join the program and was interviewed and selected by Rickover,” noted the Naval History and Heritage Command.
He was promoted to lieutenant and from 3 November 1952 to 1 March 1953, he served on temporary duty with the Naval Reactors Branch, U.S. Atomic Energy Commission, Washington, D.C., to assist ‘in the design and development of nuclear propulsion plants for naval vessels.
Carter resigned from the Navy in 1953 following the death of his father so that he could focus on looking after his family in Georgia.
SUNDAY SCHOOL TEACHER
AS PRESIDENT IN 1977, he became the first U.S. president to be a member of the Southern Baptist Convention. He was a long-serving Sunday School teacher. For about 40 years, Carter served as a Sunday School teacher at Maranatha Baptist Church of Plains, Georgia, garnering hundreds of attendees for his lessons. He reportedly taught Sunday School in 2015 while battling brain cancer, only stopping in 2020 due to other illnesses linked to advanced age and the COVID-19 pandemic.
A MAN OF CHARITY
For over 35 years, the Carters were involved in charity Habitat for Humanity, with Jimmy having helped to build houses even after he hit the milestone age of 90. Throughout their involvement with the Jimmy & Rosalynn Carter Work Project, former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and former first lady Rosalynn Carter have been tireless advocates, active fundraisers and some of the best hands-on construction volunteers. In 2016, at the age of 91 and having recently completed treatments for brain cancer, Carter and his wife helped to build homes in Memphis, Tennessee.
