“Jimmy!” My brief encounter with President Carter
Back in the spring of 1988, just seven years after Jimmy Carter had left the Presidency, I rode my bike through Plains, Georgia. I was doing a solo ride, supported by a van and driver/PR agent (Allison Ploeger), for the Alzheimer’s Association, from Miami, Florida to Seattle, Washington.
We arrived in Plains late Saturday afternoon, having left Albany that morning, and we were looking for a nearby campground to stay the night. We were sitting in the van, in a parking lot overlooking a two lane street that hosted the Plains B&B, trying to figure out exactly what to do (pre-cell phone days!).
As I stared out the window, I saw, coming from the right, maybe fifty feet away, President Carter riding his bike. He looked relaxed, traveling at a leisurely pace on what appeared to be a mountain bike, with two Secret Service agents close behind. Without a second of reflection, I yelled out at the top of my lungs, “Jimmy!” while throwing my arm out the window to wave. I immediately felt a bit embarrassed at my over-the-top enthusiasm, especially given the otherwise still and peaceful evening in Plains. But Jimmy broke into his trademark grin and happily waved back at us, without breaking pace, slowly disappearing down the road to our left. Allison and I were thrilled to have so unexpectedly seen President Carter in such a normal, natural setting, where he literally was at home.
After we calmed down, we went into the Plains B&B to ask the proprietors about nearby campgrounds and lodging. Long story short, when they learned what we were doing (cross country ride for Alzheimer’s), they told us that the local newspaper reporter, who happened to be the niece of President Carter, would most likely want to do a story about the Ride for Reason. So they called her, and confirmed that she would be at church the following morning, and would like to interview us after the service. And, oh, President Carter would be there too, and would be teaching Sunday school.
So the following morning, we put on our Sunday best (which wasn’t much, being pulled from duffle bags stuffed into the crowded support van), and went to church. I think it was Maranatha Baptist Church. Following the service, we went to the Sunday school class, along with maybe 30-40 others, to hear President Carter talk with us about living one’s faith. The supporting text was from the book of Hebrews—I think it was about the “cloud of witnesses,” a narrative and theme and metaphor that resonates with me.
After class, we went outside into the warm Georgia morning and did our interview. Afterwards, President Carter came over to us, having seen our promo messaging on the van, and asked with earnest interest just what it was we were doing. He was unassuming, with eyes that struck me as alert and full of goodness. He exuded hospitality, wanting to make sure that our experience of Plains was positive, that we were being taken care of, and that our memories of the time there would be of good people who welcomed strangers. After five or ten minutes, we said our goodbyes, we, headed north to Atlanta, and he, headed back home.
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One of Carter’s obituaries I have read (by Steve Schmidt), which was not hagiography, closed with the following, which I’d like to share with you:
“Wherever there was suffering and injustice in the world, the oppressed peoples knew of Jimmy Carter and what he stood for because he stood for them. He stood for the American idea and ideal all through his noble life.
The American people should take a moment and say a prayer of gratitude for Jimmy Carter. Whatever ails America, it still produces people like Jimmy Carter.
Godspeed, Mr. President, on your last journey.
May you have fair winds and following seas.
Thank you for all of your service to America and to all of humanity.”
– Schmidt