On a cold Monday morning, hundreds of mourners braving the January wind made their way into the Carter Center in downtown Atlanta. Ashleigh Henning, fourth-year BCHM, was one of the many onlookers quietly making her way through the exhibits. For many, including her, this would be their first time standing in the same room as a former president.
“I contribute and participate [to the country], and that’s not just voting and talking or calling my congress members when I want something to see something. When a country is mourning and grieving, it’s something that you participate in altogether,” Henning said.
Former President Jimmy Carter died on Sunday, Dec. 29. He was 100 years old. As the 39th president of the United States, governor of Georgia and winner of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize, he was notably a champion of peace between Egypt and Israel, Panama Canal treaties, the Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty (SALT), the Arms Reduction Act and much more, according to the Carter Center. He attended Tech for a year in 1942 and was awarded an honorary Ph.D. from the Institute in 1979.
Carter and his wife, Rosalynn, were parents to four children and had 22 grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Outside of his time in office, Carter worked as a distinguished professor at Emory University. In 1982, he and Rosalynn opened the Carter Center, which aimed to “wage peace, fight disease, and build hope,” and continues that work to this day.
In the wake of his passing in Plains and as a part of former President Carter’s funeral plans, he laid in repose at the Carter Center in Atlanta for two days. For 48 hours, visitors were allowed into the Carter Center to walk through the museum exhibits free of charge and to pay their respects. Volunteer ushers braved the cold, welcoming those from far and wide into the center.
“I think that’s really why it was so meaningful that he spent time here [in Atlanta] prior to going to D.C. because it reminded everybody in the city of Atlanta that at the end of the day, he was only president for four years,” Henning continued.
“He lived in Georgia, for the rest of his time, this was his state, this was his home and we were his community members.”
Upon leaving the Carter Center, Henning and each visitor were given a card with a portrait of Carter on the front and a list of his notable achievements on the back. It detailed Carter’s rise to office, beginning with his childhood as the son of peanut farmers in Plains, Ga., before he attended Georgia Southwestern College in 1941 and the Institute in 1942. He was then called to service by the Naval Academy in 1943 where he went on to serve as a lieutenant in the Navy for seven years before retiring in 1953 after his father died.
The card also walked through Carter serving as a Georgia State Senator and President of the United States, opening the Carter Center and accepting the Nobel Peace Prize.
“The time he spent at Georgia Tech took up the same amount of space as being the president of the United States. I think that just really gave a lot of context to the time, investment and value that he sought to the state of Georgia and how he existed in this state,” Henning said.
The work done at the Carter Center includes election monitoring, eradication campaigns for diseases, strengthening human rights standards, and preventing and controlling diseases. The non-profit also frequently looks for passionate students, such as Sydney Heaton, third-year INTA, to intern at the center.
“It’s such a huge honor to just be in that space with like-minded people. The people are amazing, whether they have had 10 years of experience elsewhere before the Carter Center, or anything like that. We all know we want to create change and help make the world a better place.” Heaton said.
While reflecting on her experience as a member of the Democracy Program’s International Election team at the Carter Center, Heaton shared that she plans to follow a career path that focuses on the international social justice side and influencing policy from “the inside out.”
For Tech students like her and Henning, the Carter legacy has not only inspired their careers but also their personal lives.
Henning cites that from a young age, her parents emphasized service and civic involvement, which included working on a gubernatorial campaign for Jason Carter, one of Carter’s grandchildren, when she was 12 years old.
When a family member participated in a clinical trial, Henning found her calling by getting involved with the American Cancer Society’s cancer action network where she represents Georgia’s First Congressional District. Henning is also getting her minor in health policy and economics and plans on attending medical school after working as a clinical research coordinator.
In the fall of 2024, Henning made a trip to Washington D.C., to propose three different pieces of cancer legislation which are set to be brought to the floor next fall. She plans to return to the Georgia State Capitol in February to continue her work bettering care for patients.
Additionally, while walking through the Carter Center, Henning found that the relationship between Carter and his wife, as well as the time spent with his family, showcased his legacy.
“You can tell in the eulogy that Jason Carter gave, that at the end of the day, his life was of service, but his life was also deeply full of love,” she reflected.
After two days at the Carter Center, the former president was brought to Washington D.C. to lie in repose once more before his funeral in the Washington National Cathedral, which brought forth a rare sight — the remainder of the former and sitting presidents and vice presidents joined together for one occasion. After a long and tumultuous election cycle, one man in the Nation’s Capitol brought unity before he was taken back to Georgia.
“Carter was in one of the, or potentially the most, influential seats in the entire world. When he left that position he was like, ‘Ok, what else am I gonna do?’ because that alone wasn’t enough,” Heaton said.
“It’s so inspirational, so inspiring, just to see that people want to continue that legacy of ‘What else can I do?’ And I try to live by that every day outside of the Carter Center.”