Photo: ERIK S. LESSER / AFP / Getty Images
Former President Jimmy Carter attended a private memorial service for his wife, former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, on Tuesday (November 28) at Glenn Memorial United Methodist Church in Atlanta, Georgia.
The 99-year-old former president has been in hospice care since February following a series of hospital stays. He is expected to stay for the entire service but will not deliver remarks. Carter is the oldest living president and the longest-lived president in American history.
He was joined by President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, and Second Gentlement Doug Emhoff. Former President Bill Clinton, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and former First Ladies Laura Bush, Michelle Obama, and Melania Trump were also in attendance.
The Carters' grandson, Jason, said that his grandmother helped plan the memorial service before she died on November 17 at the age of 96, just two days after entering hospice care.
"We are doing exactly what she wanted at the service," he told CNN. "She would have been amazed and gratified by the outpouring of love and support."
During the series, the Carters' daughter, Amy Lynn, read a love letter that her father wrote to her mother 75 years ago.
"This is from a letter he wrote 75 years ago while he was serving in the Navy," Amy said.
"My darling, every time I have ever been away from you, I have been thrilled when I return to discover just how wonderful you are. While I am away, I try to convince myself that you really are not, could not be as sweet and beautiful as I remember. But when I see you, I fall in love with you all over again. Does that seem strange to you? It doesn't to me. Goodbye, darling. Until tomorrow. Jimmy."
Country music stars Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood also performed during the service.