Two former presidents, four first ladies and Joe Biden himself attended the tribute to say goodbye to Rosalynn Carter, a ceremony that she designed herself, which was filled with warm words and her favorite music and which he attended
Jimmy Carter at 99 years old.
Friends and family of the former American first lady, who died on November 18 at the age of 96, said goodbye to her at the Methodist church of Emory University in Atlanta in an emotional ceremony full of anecdotes, laughter and affection.
A few moments before the start of the event, which lasted about two hours, Former President Carter (1977-1981) entered a wheelchair, who has been receiving palliative care since February. in his house. Although his physical deterioration is evident, she was present throughout the ceremony in the front row.
Speaking to CNN, one of the Carters’ grandchildren, Jason, explained that although he is “very physically impaired” and can no longer speak, Jimmy Carter would not “miss for the world” the farewell of the woman of his life, with whom he was 77 years.
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“Rosalynn was my equal partner in everything I achieved,” the former president said in a statement published after his wife’s death.
Rosalynn Carter’s coffin, decorated with a huge centerpiece of pink and purple flowers, presided over an event in which there were constant references to butterflies, one of her great passions.
Along with historic contributions to mental health, her legacy also leaves behind the Rosalynn Carter Butterfly Trail, founded in her hometown of Plains, a network of more than 3,000 pollinator-friendly public and private gardens.
The tribute was attended by former President Bill Clinton, former Secretary of State and former First Lady Hillary Clinton, former first lady Michelle Obama – who traveled with the Bidens on Air Force One, the White House reported – as well as former first lady Melania Trump, among other personalities. None of them actively participated in the ceremony.
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The couple’s four children and 11 grandchildren also attended. Some of them went up to the altar to speak, like James Earl ‘Chip’ Carter III, who told some funny anecdotes about who his “heroine” was and mentioned how his mother “saved his life” when he had problems with addictions.
Very excited, Amy Lyn Carter, also the couple’s daughter, read one of the love letters that Jimmy Carter wrote to Rosalynn 75 years ago, while he served in the Navy.
“Every time I’m away from you, I get excited when I come back and discover how wonderful you are. While I’m away, I try to convince myself that you really aren’t, that you couldn’t be as sweet and beautiful as I remember, but when I see you “I fall in love with you again,” he said.
The Chamber Choir of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra performed at the ceremony, who performed the former first lady’s favorite songs, and American musicians Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood, who sang “Imagine” by the Beatles.
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Rosalynn Carter will have another family tribute in her hometown, Plains, and her coffin will then be taken to the family residence, where she will be buried.
Last May it became public that Rosalynn Carter had been diagnosed with dementia after precisely dedicating a large part of her life to being an advocate for the country’s mental health.
This Tuesday Jason Carter remembered him at mass. “If you imagine how far our society has come in the last five years when it comes to mental health and consider that in 1970 it decided to address the long-standing stigma associated with mental illness, it’s amazing how far it could see and how far it was willing to walk. “, he claimed.
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After leaving the White House, Rosalynn created the Carter Mental Health Center with her husband, which she later directed, and since 1984 he participated through the so-called Carter Habitat for Humanity Project in the reconstruction of homes for the most needy, in regions such as Haiti and Latin America.
In 1987 she created the Rosalynn Carter Institute for Caregiving (RCI) at Georgia Southwestern State University.
This facet earned him numerous distinctions such as the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest American civilian decoration, which he received in 1999.
EFE
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