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Remembering the life of former President Jimmy Carter and his impact on Tampa Bay

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Published  December 30, 2024 5:42pm EST
Tampa
FOX 13 News

Remembering former President Jimmy Carter

FOX 13's Evan Axelbank spoke with people in the Tampa Bay area who knew President Carter.

The Brief

    • Former President Carter is being remembered in Tampa Bay as a kindhearted public servant who cared about making peoples' lives better.
    • Former Florida Gov. Bob Martinez first met Carter as they were rising through state and national politics.
    • Carter will be buried next to Rosalynn, his wife of 77 years, at their home in Plains, Georgia.

TAMPA - Former President Carter is being remembered in Tampa Bay as a kindhearted public servant who cared about making peoples' lives better.

"You'd introduce yourself to him," said Habitat for Humanity Tampa Bay Gulfside president Mike Sutton, "and 15 minutes later in the conversation, he remembered your name."

Carter's loss is close to home for Habitat for Humanity, given his decades of support, and "sweat equity," for the non-profit that helps people build and own their own homes.

"His name and his recognition helped to really put Habitat on the map," said Sutton. "I don't know where the organization would be without his involvement for 40 years."

Sutton has numerous keepsakes from events he attended with Carter, including an autographed baseball and photos of Carter's boyhood home.

"(We) just enjoyed time with President Carter at his boyhood farm," said Sutton. "Lot of stories. He talked about how he could never be president in today's environment."

Former Florida Gov. Bob Martinez first met Carter as they were rising through state and national politics.

Former President Jimmy Carter.

Martinez notes President Carter was eager to help Tampa with Federal money and that during his administration, the country took hits from external forces, like the hostage crisis in Iran and inflation.

While his political management of those things has often been criticized, few doubted Carter was a man of principle.

"He was very sincere in conversation," said Martinez. "It wasn't just to pass the time, not just to get my vote or get my support."

Carter would spend his post presidency building homes, monitoring elections, fighting diseases in Third World countries and writing books.

The presidency didn't change him.

READ: Jimmy Carter, 39th president of the United States, dies at 100

He came from Plains, and he would return there, living in a relatively humble home with his beloved Rosalynn.

"You don't need a fortune to live in that environment," said Martinez. "The environment you grew up in, the people that you grew up with, the people that you went to church with, are the most important things in your life."

When it comes to his presidency, Carter's achievements include the Camp David Accords, which brought peace between Israel and Egypt, the creation of the Departments of Education and Energy, and he brought attention to the need for renewable energy sources.

He will be buried next to Rosalynn, his wife of 77 years, at their home in Plains, Georgia.

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