Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter was honored with a state funeral at the Washington National Cathedral on Thursday (January 9), concluding nearly a week of national mourning for the esteemed politician and humanitarian.
Joe Biden and the four living former presidents, including Donald Trump, gathered at the National Cathedral in Washington for Jimmy Carter’s memorial service—the first such meeting since George H.W. Bush’s funeral in 2018. During the service, Biden delivered a eulogy praising Carter’s character, calling it his “enduring tribute.”
Carter “never let the tides of politics divert him from his mission to serve and shape the world”, Biden told the mourners. “The man had character.”
Tributes were also offered by Carter’s family members and the sons of his vice president, Walter Mondale, and Gerald Ford, the Republican president Carter defeated in 1976.
Although he served only one term as president from 1977 to 1981, Jimmy Carter, a former peanut farmer from Georgia, left an enduring legacy through his post-presidential work. In 2002, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for the Carter Center’s efforts to combat Guinea worm disease in Africa and monitor elections worldwide. Carter also earned widespread admiration for his hands-on involvement with Habitat for Humanity, helping build homes for low-income families and fostering bipartisan respect.
As the body of Carter was carried out of the Washington National Cathedral, the US Coast Guard Band performed “Hail to the Chief”—a song Carter had famously requested not to be played during his public entrances.
Carter’s casket was transported to his hometown of Plains, Georgia, where he was laid to rest at his home following a private family funeral later on Thursday.
