US President Joe Biden has announced the state funeral for Jimmy Carter will take place on 9 January, designating the day as a National Day of Mourning.
Mr. Carter, who passed away yesterday at the age of 100, will receive tributes through public observances in his cherished home state of Georgia and in Washington, DC in the near future.
The first president to reach the age of 100, Mr. Carter had been receiving hospice care in his hometown of Plains since February 2023.
The Carter Center, his post-presidential humanitarian and pro-democracy organization, shared that he died “peacefully” at home “surrounded by his family.”
While no formal announcements have been made regarding the ceremonies in Georgia, reports from The New York Times indicate that he is likely to be transported by motorcade to the state capitol in Atlanta, in line with longstanding arrangements.
He will lie in repose at the Carter Center for approximately 36 hours before being flown to Washington to lie in state at the US Capitol for a similar duration.
Following the customary televised funeral at Washington National Cathedral, which is granted to every US president, he will be laid to rest in Plains.
Flags were lowered to half-staff across the nation as global tributes poured in celebrating the life and legacy of Jimmy Carter, the longest-lived US president, who passed away at 100 years old.
The Georgia native, whose remarkable journey took him from picking peanuts on his family farm to the Oval Office, was remembered with heartfelt tributes as a passionate advocate for human rights and a champion for the marginalized.
The US flag was lowered to half-staff following Jimmy Carter’s death.
First US president born in a hospital.
The US Navy veteran experienced an unexpectedly lengthy post-presidency after a four-year term in the Oval Office, noted for his success in brokering peace between Israel and Egypt, but also marked by the Iran hostage crisis and challenges with an oil shortage.
He faced a significant defeat to Ronald Reagan in 1980.
However, in the years that followed, Mr. Carter’s acclaim grew due to his humanitarian and diplomatic efforts, alongside his work with his wife Rosalynn to build homes through Habitat for Humanity.
In 2002, Mr. Carter was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his “decades of tireless work to find peaceful resolutions to international conflicts, advance democracy and human rights, and promote economic and social development.”
Jimmy Carter served as president from 1977 to 1981.
As the first US president born in a hospital, he continued to teach Sunday school at Maranatha Baptist, his church in Plains, well into his 90s.
He was married to Rosalynn for 77 years, a fellow Plains native who had been a part of his life for as long as he could remember.
When she passed away at the age of 96 on 19 November 2023, they held the record for the longest presidential marriage in US history.
Mr. Carter’s last public appearance was at his wife’s memorial service, where he was seen in the front row in a wheelchair.
