‘We lost an icon.’ Civic leaders in the Carolinas react to Jimmy Carter’s life and legacy
Government and civic leaders across the Carolinas remembered former President Jimmy Carter on Sunday in the hours after he died at his home in Georgia at the age of 100.
“Today we lost an icon who was the epitome of what it means to be a true public servant in and out of office,” Gov. Roy Cooper wrote in a post on X. “In a political world of hate and bombast, President Carter was a kind, calm, giving and sincere man of faith. Well done, good and faithful servant.”
As the 39th President, Carter served in the White House from 1977 to 1981. He lived longer than any U.S. president.
In the decades after his presidency, Carter earned accolades for his humanitarian work, a legacy largely tied to Habitat for Humanity work that many North Carolina officials referenced when giving condolences.
He received a Nobel Peace Prize in 2002 for his work through the Carter Center.
“He represented the best of America: guided by faith and service and dedicated to our nation’s promise,” Gov.-elect Josh Stein wrote on X and Bluesky.
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U.S. Senator Thom Tillis in a statement Sunday said Carter “will be remembered for his passion for helping those in need, his robust and unshakable faith, and his commitment to public service.”
The son of the Rev. Billy Graham wrote on Facebook Sunday about his father’s relationship with the president — also a man of faith.
“(Carter) and my father Billy Graham had a close relationship, and we were honored to have him join us for the dedication of the Billy Graham Library in Charlotte in 2007. I know that his family would appreciate your prayers,” wrote Franklin Graham, president and CEO of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and Samaritan’s Purse.
In a Sunday evening statement, U.S. Sen. Tim Scott, R-SC, said, “President Carter’s public witness of his faith was a blessing to his family, the church, and our country. His legacy as a Sunday school teacher, faithful husband to his bride, and a man of deep Christian conviction in private and in public service will inspire Americans for generations to come.
“May his memory be a blessing to his family and our nation.”
A former Georgia Governor, Carter won both North Carolina and South Carolina in 1976. It was the last time a Democrat carried both states in a presidential election.
Admiration for Carter came from both sides of the political aisle Sunday, including North Carolina native and Republican National Committee chair Michael Whatley who posted on X that Carter “lived a life of service to the Navy, his home state of Georgia and the United States.”
‘A man who epitomized humility’
Carter’s celebrated work with Habitat for Humanity began when he and his wife, Rosalynn Cater, started volunteering near their home in southwest Georgia more than 40 years ago, according to a statement from the nonprofit.
From 1984 to 2019, the couple every year worked alongside homeowners to build or improve houses for those in need through the Jimmy & Rosalynn Carter Work Project.
“There something to said about a person’s life when ‘President of the United States’ could easily be a scant mention in his obituary,” wrote U.S. Representative Ralph Norman, who serves South Carolina’s 5th congressional district, on Facebook Sunday evening.
Carter’s administration overlapped with that of North Carolina Gov. Jim Hunt, a fellow Democrat. On Sunday, the Hunt Institute (a nonprofit policy organization Hunt founded in 2001) called Carter “a leader whose dedication to service and education made the world a better place” in an X post.
Melba Evans, the former vice president and current president emeritus of Charlotte’s National Organization for Women chapter, said she “had the privilege of working on a Habitat house in Charlotte” with the former president and first lady.
“What amazing human beings they both were,” Evans wrote posted on Facebook minutes after news of Carter’s death broke.
She ended her post with the words Former President Bill Clinton spoke when presenting Carter and his wife with the Presidential Medal of Freedom: “Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter have done more good things for more people in more places than any other couple on the face of the Earth.”
In Matthews, a town just over 10 miles southeast of Charlotte, commissioner Ken McCool had this to say about “the only U.S. President I’ve ever had the privilege to meet.”
Carter was “a man who epitomized humility, service, and dedication to others... His incredible work after the presidency — whether building homes through Habitat for Humanity, advocating for human rights, or fighting disease around the globe — has always been an inspiration,” McCool wrote.
Reunited with Rosalynn Carter
Finally, U.S. Rep. Alma Adams, D-N.C., in a statement Sunday said Carter ”restored dignity and humility to the White House when it was sorely needed.
“He challenged Americans to walk ‘a path of common purpose,’ to reject war and materialism, and to take bold steps to protect our planet and future,” she wrote.
Adams noted that Carter was a family man, too.
“Having built new homes for those in need until he couldn’t even lift the tools anymore,” Adams wrote, “President Carter has now gone home himself, to his dear wife ... his ‘equal partner in everything he did’ ... Rosalynn.”
This story was originally published December 29, 2024 at 5:21 PM with the headline "‘We lost an icon.’ Civic leaders in the Carolinas react to Jimmy Carter’s life and legacy."
