Former President Jimmy Carter enters hospice care after series of hospital stays

Tributes are flooding in for former President Jimmy Carter after it was revealed that he is to enter hospice care.

According to reports, the decision was made after the popular statesman made a series of short hospital stays recently.

Carter has continued to endeavor to serve the public long since leaving the White House – the 98-year-old is the longest living former US President in history.

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As per BBC, Carter’s foundation announced on Saturday that he will end medical treatment and enter hospice care at his home in Plains, Georgia.

“He has the full support of his family and his medical team. The Carter family asks for privacy during this time and is grateful for the concern shown by his many admirers,” the Carter Center said in a statement on Saturday.

Former Georgia state senator Jason Carter, President Carter’s grandson, tweeted at the weekend to say he had visited “both of my grandparents yesterday.”

“They are at peace and – as always – their home is full of love. Thank you all for your kind words,” he said.

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Needless to say, a who’s who of politicians, public servants, and high-profile figures have expressed their sadness at the news and paid tribute to the man who served one term as the US’s leader between 1977-1981.

On Sunday, current US President Joe Biden said he and Jill Biden were praying for their “friends Jimmy and Rosalynn”.

“We admire you for the strength and humility you have shown in difficult times,” Mr Biden wrote. “May you continue your journey with grace and dignity, and God grant you peace.”

Jimmy Carter was born in 1924 and was raised by his businessman father and nurse mother in and around Plains, Georgia.

Back in the mid-1920s, about 600 people lived in the small town. One of those people was Rosalynn Smith.

Jimmy and Rosalynn’s love story would go down in history, and their journey began over 90 years ago. In fact, Jimmy Carter can still recall the day his wife was born. He was only three years old and his family lived next door to Rosalynn’s.

Jimmy and Rosalynn exchanged their vows on July 7, 1946, in their hometown of Plains, Georgia, where the two nonagenarians still live.

”I knew that she was quiet, she was extremely intelligent … beautiful,” Jimmy once told Oprah. There was just something about her that was irresistible.”

Despite losing the 1980 election to Ronald Reagan, Jimmy has striven to serve the public well into his nineties. In 1982, he and Rosalynn founded the nonprofit Carter Center, while Jimmy was seen helping to build houses for Habitat for Humanity as recently as three years ago, aged 95.

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All our thoughts and prayers go out to the legendary Jimmy Carter. Regardless of your opinion on how he was as a president, you cannot deny that he has a heart of gold and a soul of compassion.

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