‘Final chapter’: Inside the last days of Jimmy Carter as he rejects medical treatment for in-home hospice care
Published 1:11 pm Sunday, August 20, 2023
- U.S. President Jimmy Carter waves to the crowd while walking with his wife, Rosalynn, and their daughter, Amy, along Pennsylvania Avenue. The Carters elected to walk the parade route from the Capitol to the White House following his inauguration in Washington, Jan. 20, 1977. (Associated Press Archives)
Jaclyn Roth / Special to the American Press
Jimmy Carter’s grandson Josh Carter gave an update on how the former president, 98, is doing after entering hospice care in February.
“My grandparents have always been the entertainers,” he said in a new interview about Jimmy and his wife, Rosalynn. “But now we’re kind of the ones having to entertain. It’s different, it’s just a different era.”
He noted the couple’s Georgia home is “quiet and calm,” but there’s always “somebody at the house” to keep them company.
“He’s still fully Jimmy Carter,” Josh noted. “He’s just tired. I mean he’s almost 99 years old, but he fully understands (how many well wishes he’s received) and has felt the love .”
Meanwhile, Rosalynn, 96, who has dementia, “still knows who we are, for the most part — that we are family,” Josh said. “My grandmother is still able to form new memories.”
Though Josh said it’s “gotta be hard” for Jimmy to see his wife of 77 years losing her memories, he believes the politician is grateful “they’ve experienced everything that you can together . I think the beautiful thing is that they are still together. They are still holding hands … it’s just amazing.”
“Odds are I’m gonna lose my grandfather before my grandmother,” he added. “He’s in hospice care and she’s not, and it’s just math.”