Jimmy Carter Was Never The Same After The Death Of His Beloved Wife Rosalynn

Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter died at 100 years old on December 29, 2024, but he was never the same after the death of his wife, who departed the world just over a year before him. His longtime wife and first lady, Rosalynn Carter, died at the age of 96 on November 19, 2023. During his final decade, the former president navigated a series of significant health problems — including hip surgery, liver surgery, and metastatic melanoma (which he eventually beat) – but his health took a downturn soon after Rosalynn was laid to rest. While President Carter, who'd already been assigned his own hospice nurses since February of that year, was well enough to spend the final moments of Rosalynn's life by her side, signs of his impending demise were apparent.

According to Jimmy and Rosalynn's son, James E. "Chip" Carter III, the former president made sure to soak in his wife's final moments. "My Dad told her he loved her and thanked her for all the wonderful things she had done," Chip shared with The Washington Post. "Then he asked us to leave so he could be alone with her." Jimmy was present when Rosalynn took her final breaths, a tragic, yet beautiful ending to Jimmy and Rosalynn's decades-long love story.

While the article stated that his mind was still intact, his physical health left a question mark over whether he'd be able to show up to her funeral. Ultimately, Jimmy, in a wheelchair, attended Rosalynn's memorial, but couldn't make a speech. "He's coming to the end, and he's very, very physically diminished," his grandson and Carter Center board chairman, Jason Carter, told The New York Times. "But I think he was proud and happy that he was there for her till the very end."

Although Jimmy Carter lived for nearly two years after going into hospice care in February 2023, his health never bounced back, and seemed to worsen in the months after the death of Rosalynn Carter. However, in his eyes, it's because of Rosalynn that he made it into his 90s. In 2019, when he and Rosalynn were well enough to continue their life-long passion of volunteering with Habitat For Humanity, he spoke with People about how he'd made it to 95. "It's hard to live until you're 95 years old," admitted the former POTUS. "I think the best explanation for that is to marry the best spouse: someone who will take care of you and engage and do things to challenge you and keep you alive and interested in life."

Ultimately, Jimmy lived nearly five more years. However, he spent part of his last year or so wondering if he'd be able to see Rosalynn through her departure. According to his son, Chip Carter, he was determined to make it, partially for her sake. "Dad told me several times over the last nine months that he had always thought he would outlive Mom and protect her until she passed, but that now he wasn't sure that was going to happen — and that upset him," Chip recounted to The Washington Post. "But he stayed alive. We all told him how proud we were of his relationship with her and of how he looked after her."