[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 200 (Tuesday, December 5, 2023)]
[House]
[Pages H6133-H6138]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




HONORING THE LIFE AND LEGACY OF FORMER FIRST LADY ROSALYNN SMITH CARTER

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Duarte). Under the Speaker's announced 
policy of January 9, 2023, the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Bishop) is 
recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the minority leader.
  Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, it is with a heavy heart and 
solemn remembrance that I rise today to honor the life and legacy of a 
former First Lady of the United States, a former First Lady of the 
State of Georgia, a great wife, a loving mother, a doting grandmother 
and great-grandmother, a dedicated servant leader, and a friend of 
longstanding, Mrs. Rosalynn Smith Carter.
  Sadly, Mrs. Carter transitioned from this life on November 19, 2023. 
Her funeral service was held at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, November 29, 
2023, at the Maranatha Baptist Church in Plains, Georgia.
  Rosalynn Smith Carter was born and raised in Plains, Georgia, to the 
union of Wilburn Edgar Smith and Frances Allethea ``Allie'' Murray 
Smith. She graduated as valedictorian from Plains High School and 
attended Georgia Southwestern College, now Georgia Southwestern State 
University, in Americus, Georgia, where she served as vice president of 
her class and graduated in 1946.

  In 1945, she began dating James Earl ``Jimmy'' Carter, Jr., also from 
Plains and whose family farmed peanuts. Jimmy was attending the United 
States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, at the time. They were 
married in Plains on July 7, 1946, and they would go on to spend 77 
cherished years together.
  Following the death of her father-in-law, James Earl Carter, Sr., in 
1953, Rosalynn, Jimmy, and their three sons returned to Plains, 
Georgia, from Norfolk, Virginia, where he had been stationed in the 
Navy as Jimmy was now tasked with running the family business.
  Rosalynn took over its bookkeeping and proved herself a formidable 
business partner.
  After her husband was elected to the Georgia State Senate in 1962, 
her role on the peanut farm grew, especially while he traveled to 
Atlanta for legislative sessions.
  In 1970, Senator Jimmy Carter launched his campaign for Governor, and 
Rosalynn took a leading role on the campaign trail. In addition to 
handling most of her husband's political correspondence and meeting 
with constituents, Mrs. Carter began to travel

[[Page H6134]]

across the State of Georgia to campaign on his behalf.
  Following Jimmy Carter's election as Governor, Mrs. Carter served as 
Georgia's First Lady from 1971 to 1975, where she would take on the 
role of Governor Carter's trusted adviser and confidant. She was 
appointed to the Governor's Commission to Improve Services for the 
Mentally and Emotionally Handicapped, where she formally began working 
on one of her foremost initiatives: improving and breaking the stigma 
surrounding mental health.
  In 1972, Governor Carter gave me, a young, beginning lawyer, my first 
political appointment, a seat on the Governor's Advisory Council on 
Drug Abuse.
  Governor Carter completed his term in January 1975. Georgia's 
Constitution then banned its Governors from serving successive terms.
  Prior to moving back to Plains, Governor Carter had already announced 
his intention to run for President of the United States in the 1976 
election.
  Rosalynn Carter, once again, joined the campaign and quickly began 
traveling the Nation on her husband's behalf to tell American voters 
why the soft-spoken Georgia peanut farmer should become President of 
the United States.
  In November 1976, Jimmy Carter was elected President of the United 
States, and Rosalynn accompanied him to the White House, where she 
would make her mark in defining what it meant to be America's First 
Lady.
  While serving as First Lady of the United States from 1977 to 1981, 
Mrs. Carter made it clear that she had no intention of solely carrying 
out the duties traditionally left to wives of Presidents. As an equal 
partner to her husband, she attended many Cabinet meetings and weekly 
business meetings with President Carter, where she would be informed 
and could give meaningful advice and counsel on the policy issues of 
the day.
  The egalitarian relationship between President and Mrs. Carter drew 
widespread interest but also criticism from those who believed the wife 
of a U.S. President should focus solely on homemaking and hosting White 
House parties and events for foreign dignitaries.
  The Carters brushed their critics aside, and in 1977, President 
Carter appointed Rosalynn the honorary chair of the President's 
Commission on Mental Health.
  In 1979, the commission submitted a mental health systems bill to 
Congress, and Mrs. Carter testified in support of the bill before a 
U.S. Senate subcommittee, becoming the first Presidential wife since 
Eleanor Roosevelt to do so.
  Subsequently, the Mental Health Systems Act was passed by Congress 
and signed into law by President Carter on October 7, 1980.
  Following President Carter's loss in the 1980 Presidential election, 
the Carter family returned to Plains, Georgia, where they continued to 
make a positive impact on both their local community and the world.
  Mr. and Mrs. Carter continued their ministry of service after that 
time in the White House with the same vigor and urgency, becoming 
heavily involved in Habitat for Humanity, whose international 
headquarters was then located in Americus, Georgia.
  The Carters' work with Habitat for Humanity drew national attention 
through the annual Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Work Project, which helped 
the upstart nonprofit organization grow and construct thousands and 
thousands of new homes for low- and middle-income families.
  In 1982, Rosalynn and Jimmy founded The Carter Center, a nonprofit 
human rights organization that has since become famous for its work to 
eradicate disease, strengthen democracies, and alleviate human 
suffering all around the world.

                              {time}  1515

  Mrs. Carter served as the vice chair of The Carter Center from 1986 
to 2005 and served as a member of the board of trustees from 2005 until 
her death.
  Throughout her life, she sought to improve the quality of life for 
those who suffered from mental illness and disability, including those 
who care for them.
  Mrs. Carter established the Rosalynn Carter Institute for Caregivers 
in 1987 at her alma mater, Georgia Southwestern State University in 
Americus. Today, the Rosalynn Carter Institute supports caregivers 
across the United States through research, creating dementia and 
Alzheimer's disease programs and other tools that help Americans be 
effective caregivers to their loved ones.
  Mother Teresa once said: ``A life not lived for others is not a 
life.'' I can say without a shadow of a doubt that Rosalynn Carter 
lived her life for others and went beyond the call of duty to do so.
  It has been an honor to know Rosalynn and Jimmy Carter for more than 
half a century. I will always cherish their friendship as well as their 
sage counsel and advice, which has been invaluable to me as I have 
served in Congress. They have been my constituents for 31 years, and 
they did not hold back in expressing their opinion on the issues of the 
day.
  Together they rose to great heights, supporting and cherishing one 
another along the way as they served the world around them. From the 
Plains peanut fields to the Governor's mansion to the White House and 
to communities around the globe, they always remained grounded, and 
Plains remained home in their hearts.
  Rosalynn Carter accomplished so much for so many for so long. She did 
so with the grace of God as well as the love and support of her devoted 
husband, their five children, their 22 grandchildren and great-
grandchildren.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues of the United States House of 
Representatives to join my wife, Vivian, and me along with the more 
than 765,000 people of Georgia's Second Congressional District and 
people all around the world in honoring the great service to humanity 
of Mrs. Rosalynn Carter and extending our deepest sympathies to her 
family.
  At this time, I yield to the gentleman from Georgia's Eighth District 
(Mr. Austin Scott), my good friend.
  Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend and 
colleague, Congressman Bishop, for his courtesy and for leading this 
Special Order hour.
  We are here to honor the former First Lady of both Georgia and the 
United States, Rosalynn Carter.
  She was a great lady, an outstanding Georgian, a Navy spouse, and a 
distinguished humanitarian who dedicated her life to bettering her 
country and her community.
  The Carter name is synonymous with a faith in and love for Jesus 
Christ, and anybody in our part of the State--I lived about an hour 
from them--who knows the Carter family knows their legacy is that they 
continued to teach and be active in their church, and they were just 
wonderful people. They loved Georgia, they loved the United States of 
America, and specifically they loved rural Georgia and south Georgia.
  She would have been very proud to know that all five of the First 
Ladies were there to show respect to her at her memorial service in a 
bipartisan manner.
  She was born and raised in Plains, Georgia. She attended Georgia 
Southwestern College before she married the beloved farmer, Georgia 
Governor, and President Jimmy Carter. What you might not know is that 
she was first attracted to President Carter when she saw him in his 
naval uniform, as he was a graduate of the Naval Academy.
  She was his equivalent in every way when they served together, 
whether it was as First Lady of our great State from 1971 to 1975 or as 
First Lady of the United States of America.
  She was a long-term advocate of mental health in Georgia, aiming to 
increase mental health services and to stop the stigma that surrounds 
mental illness. She was appointed to serve on the Governor's Commission 
to Improve Services for the Mentally and Emotionally Handicapped. She 
volunteered at the Georgia Regional Hospital in Atlanta and was an 
honorary chairperson for the Georgia Special Olympics.
  After her husband became President of the United States in 1977, it 
was Mrs. Carter who elevated the role of the First Lady for generations 
to come by continuing to work to improve mental health services across 
the United States. She actually sat in on Cabinet meetings. If I am not 
mistaken, she was the first of the First Ladies to sit in on Cabinet 
meetings.

[[Page H6135]]

  During her time in the White House, mental health care was one of her 
priorities to increase government assistance to the mentally ill. She 
later became an honorary chair of the President's Commission on Mental 
Health.
  After leaving the White House, she cofounded The Carter Center 
alongside her husband in 1982 to advocate for democracy and peace 
across the globe and established mental health programs to collaborate 
on mental health policy. Her passion for mental health advocacy 
encouraged her to create the Rosalynn Carter Institute for Caregivers, 
which addresses issues in caregiving not just in the United States, but 
internationally.
  She was also the sponsor of the USS Jimmy Carter, one of the most 
distinguished submarines in the history of the United States Navy. A 
sponsor is named by the Secretary of the Navy, and the sponsor's role 
is an important one. Mrs. Carter participated in many of the milestones 
in the life of her ship, including smashing the bottle against the bow 
of the submarine and bestowing its name in 2004. The following year, 
the USS Jimmy Carter was commissioned and entered the fleet after she 
said in her role as sponsor: ``Man our ship and bring her to life.''
  Rosalynn Carter's dedication to public service made her an 
inspiration to everyone. Our Nation is thankful for her grace and 
bipartisanship as First Lady.
  Our prayers are with President Jimmy Carter and the Carter family. 
May we continue to carry her patriotic legacy as we serve the people of 
our Nation.

  Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend and colleague, Congressman Bishop, for 
leading this hour, and I thank the Carter family for their service to 
this country.
  Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from 
Georgia, my friend and my colleague, for his comments, and I thank him 
for joining with me in organizing today's bipartisan Special Order hour 
in honor of First Lady Rosalynn Carter.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from the 13th Congressional 
District of Georgia (Mr. David Scott), the ranking member of the 
Agriculture Committee.
  Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise at this time feeling 
a great honor to be here in the House of Representatives of the United 
States to say a few words about an extraordinary person.
  Mr. Speaker, as I reflect, I am thinking of three specific instances 
of my interactions with this wonderful lady that I think sheds a great 
light on the legacy of her story.
  One was where I served in the Georgia State Senate. I was chairman of 
the State senate rules committee, and we were dealing with a very 
serious issue facing our farmers, particularly our peanut farmers. Into 
the committee walked this lady, Mrs. Rosalynn Carter, to express the 
need to help these farmers. It ruled the day because there was some 
debate on that, but she turned it and gave a resounding victory, and 
helped to give that victory to our farmers.
  The second instance was in the rules committee when we had another 
bill. It was to give our young people of Georgia scholarships in our 
university systems. Some had great problems with that. It was a good 
friend, Zell Miller's bill, Governor Zell Miller at the time, and some 
wanted to reference it as gambling because it was related to that. 
However, with Rosalynn Carter there, again, she was able to help get a 
victory.
  The third time was when Rosalynn Carter came into my district in 
Georgia. It was in the neighborhood of Summerhill and Grant Park. There 
she was with us all, hammering nails and building houses for those who 
needed houses in my district. What a lady.
  Mr. Speaker:

     Them that's got shall get
     Them that's not shall lose
     So the Bible said and it still is news
     Mama may have, papa may have,
     But God bless the child that's got his own.

  Mr. Speaker, Rosalynn Carter was most assuredly a child of God, and 
we thank God for sending Mrs. Rosalynn Carter our way.
  Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from 
Georgia's First Congressional District (Mr. Carter).
  Mr. CARTER of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for 
yielding and for hosting this Special Order hour.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor and to remember the life of the 
late First Lady Rosalynn Carter, a trailblazer, a great American, a 
strong Christian, and an icon in the State of Georgia.
  Born in 1927 in Plains, Georgia, like her husband, Mrs. Carter came 
from very humble beginnings. She was the valedictorian of Plains High 
School, and soon after a proud graduate of Georgia Southwestern 
College.
  She married the future President, Jimmy Carter, in 1946, whom she 
remained dutifully married to until her passing this past November.
  Rosalynn Carter wasn't just any Georgian. She was one of the best. 
Her entire life exemplified what it means to be selfless, to serve 
others and her community. She dedicated herself to improving the lives 
of those around her, the lives of Georgians, and the lives of 
Americans.
  She became a pioneer in the mental health space, helping to found The 
Carter Center with the mission of alleviating human suffering and 
advancing human rights. She was also active in Habitat for Humanity, 
building homes for the less fortunate members of our community.
  Throughout her entire life, Rosalynn Carter lived with the mission of 
leaving the world a better place than when she got here.
  I want to pay particular attention to her work in the mental health 
space. Rosalynn Carter was a trailblazer in mental health issues at a 
time when mental health issues were something that weren't accepted in 
this country. She led. For that I think she will always be thanked.
  Through her entire life, she lived with the mission of leaving the 
world a better place than when she got here. I can confidently say she 
accomplished that mission. Though she is no longer with us, her legacy 
and her impact have been felt by millions and will be felt by millions 
in the future.
  I had the pleasure of serving with her grandson, Jason, in the 
Georgia State Senate. I remember how proud Jason was of his 
grandparents. I remember the love that he expressed for his 
grandmother.
  Mr. Speaker, in our lives there are people and places we remember. 
For the State of Georgia, we always will remember Rosalynn Carter, an 
inspiration to all of us.
  My prayers are with her family, with former President Carter, and the 
millions of Americans affected by her loss. I thank my colleague from 
Georgia, again, for inviting me to speak today and giving me this 
opportunity to honor one of the truly great Georgians of our time.

                              {time}  1530

  Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I thank Representative Carter for 
his remarks.
  I yield to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Johnson) of the Fourth 
Congressional District.
  Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise in celebration of the 
remarkable life of an extraordinary woman, a true Georgia treasure, 
First Lady Rosalynn Carter. I extend my deepest condolences to her 
family and friends.
  In my representation of the citizens of Georgia's Fourth 
Congressional District, it is my honor to acknowledge the indelible 
impact Mrs. Carter had, not only on the State of Georgia but also on 
our country.
  From her tireless advocacy for mental health and disability rights to 
her dedication to humanitarian causes, Rosalynn Carter exemplified the 
essence of public service.
  A graduate of Georgia's Southwestern College in Americus, Georgia, 
Rosalynn Carter was an accomplished woman who graduated as 
valedictorian of her class in 1946.
  She became an accomplished businesswoman while establishing herself 
as an equal partner to her husband, Jimmy, who would later become 
President of the United States.
  Mrs. Carter was a devoted wife and mother, and her love and support 
for her husband, President Jimmy Carter, was unwavering.
  Her grace, resilience, and unwavering commitment to fostering a 
compassionate society have left an enduring legacy.

[[Page H6136]]

  In her selfless pursuit of making the world a better place, Rosalynn 
Carter embodied the finest qualities of leadership, even expanding the 
role of First Lady by attending Cabinet meetings and offering wise 
counsel to her husband, our President.
  As we celebrate the life of this consummate southern gentlewoman, let 
us all commit to living a life such as hers, one that has enriched the 
fabric of our country and serves as a guiding light for generations to 
come.
  I thank the gentleman representing Georgia's Second Congressional 
District (Mr. Bishop) for organizing this Special Order hour.
  Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for his 
remarks.
  I yield to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Loudermilk) of Georgia's 
11th District.
  Mr. LOUDERMILK. Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend from Georgia for 
yielding the time and for setting up this time to honor the life of 
Rosalynn Carter.
  I am a native Georgian. I grew up in Georgia. The town I grew up in 
is represented by my good friend Mr. Scott.
  Where I live now is in north Georgia, in the northern part of the 
State, and right behind my house as a cemetery where the graves date 
back to before the Civil War. There are some even as far back as the 
late 1700s.
  I like to walk through that cemetery and think about the history that 
is there. As you go to each one of the tombstones there, in most cases, 
you have a birth date and a date of death, but in between those are the 
dash.
  As I tell my children, it is not the date you were born that matters 
nor the date that you die, but it is what you did in that dash that 
matters.
  The Carters have left an impact on the State of Georgia that has 
personally impacted me. I remember as Jimmy Carter was the 76th 
Governor of Georgia and Rosalynn was the First Lady. As has been said 
here, she was a champion of mental health issues.
  I was a young Cub Scout who actually was on a field trip to visit the 
Governor's mansion in the State of Georgia in the early 1970s. As a 
young Cub Scout, I still remember today walking up the steps of the 
Governor's mansion, and I was met at the front door by Governor Jimmy 
Carter and First Lady Rosalynn Carter.
  I still remember what a sweet demeanor she had as she welcomed us 
into her home, the home of the Governor of the State of Georgia.
  I also remember that as I stretched my hand out and shook her hand, 
as I pulled it away, she placed in my hand a bag of peanuts.
  If you go to any of the offices in Georgia today, you will find bags 
of peanuts in our offices. Every time I see a bag of peanuts, I reflect 
back as a young Cub Scout having a bag of peanuts placed in my hand by 
Rosalynn Carter.
  I didn't realize that that legacy would continue on as I served in 
the State Senate. In Georgia, I served with their grandson, Jason 
Carter.
  Although he was on the other side of the aisle, we became good 
friends, and we worked closely together. We joked about our political 
differences, but we focused on the things that we agreed upon, and 
there were many.
  In fact, when I won my first election for Congress, one of the first 
calls of congratulation I received was from the Carter family.
  The interaction with the Carters did not end there. Just a few years 
ago, I was working on a piece of legislation called the BUILD Act.
  The BUILD Act was to reduce government regulation when it comes to 
zero interest mortgages by charity groups such as Habitat for Humanity.
  When we were working on this bill in the Financial Services 
Committee, we reached out to the Carters who helped us with this very 
important piece of legislation, putting partisanship aside with their 
hearts still upon doing everything that they can to help the people of 
Georgia and help the people of this country.
  They reached out and helped us move along this bipartisan piece of 
legislation, which, by the way, was the very last piece of legislation 
that was signed into law by the previous President, Mr. Donald Trump.
  This is what Rosalynn Carter's dash was about. It was about the 
people. It was about leaving an impression upon a young Cub Scout that 
really lasted a lifetime and was an inspiration to me and is still an 
inspiration going forward.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from Georgia for taking this time 
to honor Mrs. Carter.
  Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for his 
remarks.
  I yield to the gentlewoman from the Fifth Congressional District, 
(Ms. Williams).
  Ms. WILLIAMS of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I thank Congressman Bishop, 
dean of our Georgia delegation, for chairing today's Special Order hour 
remembering First Lady Rosalynn Carter, a truly remarkable public 
servant, a wife, a parent, a grandparent, a friend, a humanitarian, and 
an inspiration to countless people around the globe.
  Mrs. Carter's impact could be seen last week as thousands of people 
lined up to honor her in Plains where she lived with her beloved 
husband of 77 years, President Jimmy Carter; and then in Americus, 
where she attended college; and Atlanta, where she cofounded the Carter 
Center with President Carter.
  I was one of those people who paid their respects at The Carter 
Center as she laid in repose. I am honored to add to the tribute today 
on the floor of the House of Representatives.
  I am very fortunate to have met First Lady Carter on many occasions. 
Every time that I met her, I was struck by her grace and her kindness 
and genuineness.
  Mrs. Carter embodied service and never stopped working to uplift 
marginalized communities. I was especially fortunate to partner with 
Mrs. Carter in that work as we uplifted care workers and an increase in 
investments to the care economy which is so essential to everything in 
our lives.
  She founded the Rosalynn Carter Institute for Caregivers at Georgia's 
Southwestern State University, her alma mater, which today supports 40 
million caregivers across the country and will be an enduring living 
legacy of the former First Lady.
  Uplifting care workers was only one of the many issues for which Mrs. 
Carter was an advocate. Mrs. Carter wasn't afraid to advocate for 
issues long before it was easy or popular to do so.
  She was a champion for women's rights and one of the leading 
supporters of the equal rights amendment. She spearheaded the Mental 
Health Systems Act of 1980 to end stigmas around mental illness.
  As First Lady and with The Carter Center, she strengthened democracy 
around the globe. Of course, who can forget the images of her and 
President Carter building homes with Habitat for Humanity for many, 
many decades.
  This spirit of service was genuine and a defining characteristic of 
Mrs. Carter's life. The spirit of service embodied by Rosalynn and 
Jimmy Carter inspired me and my husband, Leslie, to name our only son, 
Carter, in their honor. Every day we strive to ensure that Carter lives 
up to the spirit of his namesake.
  While delivering her eulogy, my friend, Jason Carter, Mrs. Carter's 
grandson, said his grandmother's life was a sermon. It is true, and all 
great sermons compel us to act.
  Mrs. Carter showed us the power of action while using every 
opportunity given to us. If the House of Representatives uses our 
opportunity to act every day to improve the lives of our constituents, 
we will truly have taken the sermon of Rosalynn Carter's life to heart 
while honoring her in the best way possible.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank the dean of our delegation for honoring Mrs. 
Carter today and hosting this Special Order hour.
  Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I thank Representative Williams 
for her remarks.
  I yield to the gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Kaptur) of Ohio's Ninth 
District, my fellow appropriator and a dedicated public servant.
  Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, I thank the former and soon-to-be again 
chair of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural 
Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies; Mr. 
Bishop.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate the life of former First Lady 
Rosalynn Carter of Plains, Georgia.
  Born Eleanor Rosalynn Smith, she began dating a young Naval cadet 
named James Earl Carter, Jr., in 1945.

[[Page H6137]]

The two were inseparable for nearly 8 years.
  Rosalynn Carter, beloved spouse of President Jimmy Carter and mother 
to their family and our Nation, has blessed our Republic for over 
three-quarters of a century.
  Her perpetual kindness, wisdom, and faithfulness to family, 
community, and country is legendary. Her patriotism had no bounds.
  As First Lady of Georgia and then our Nation, she perserveringly and 
with her matter-of-fact manner elevated the plight of the mentally ill 
to national attention.
  I can recall as a farm wife, after her husband was elected President, 
the footage of her carrying her sewing machine into the White House, 
which stirred surprise and even criticism in some privileged quarters 
by people who had never worked with their hands as she tried to show 
struggling families at home and abroad how to be more self-sufficient.

  As a White House urban policy staffer after the President was 
elected, I had the privilege of working with her, a fierce, caring ally 
in neighborhood revitalization across our Nation in some of the most 
forgotten corners of America.
  She was a lady in every sense of the word, but, boy, was she 
determined. She was gracious, erudite, persuasive, faith filled, 
indefatigable, committed, and a true credit to our great Nation.
  As others have mentioned, upon leaving the White House, she would go 
on to be involved in many worthy endeavors both abroad and at home.
  From hurricane relief to global aid for Africa to Habitat for 
Humanity, building homes for those in need, and to founding The Carter 
Center, we all know the lasting legacy that Rosalynn and Jimmy Carter 
left for those who came after them and to future generations.
  History will treat them well because they helped build a better 
America and one with a kinder heart. Their lives of public service will 
be unmatched by any First Family in our lifetimes and among the most 
consequential in our Nation's history.
  May Rosalynn's spirit and memory comfort her husband, her family, 
staff that served them ably, and all the millions of people the Carter 
family touched with healing and inspiration.
  May the angels of mercy carry her to a peaceful rest. I am so honored 
to be able to pay tribute to her beautiful life here today.
  Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, may I inquire as to how much time 
is remaining?
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Georgia has 24 minutes 
remaining.
  Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from 
Tennessee (Mr. Cohen) of the Ninth Congressional District.

                              {time}  1545

  Mr. COHEN. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the gentleman yielding me time.
  Mr. Speaker, I don't do a lot of these, but when Congressman Bishop 
asked me to come to be recognized and talk about Rosalynn Carter, I had 
no choice but to say yes. She was a marvelous woman, a marvelous human 
being, and a great First Lady. She was the epitome of what a spouse 
should be, what a mother should be, and what a grandmother should be. 
She did live nearly a perfect life, from what we know. She was a giving 
person and a caring person.
  Rosalynn was very devoted to her religion, and there was not any 
hypocrisy about her. She lived her life and took actions as the Bible 
would have taught her to do. She cared about others, and she gave her 
life to others.
  The last time I saw Rosalynn was in Memphis when she was there with 
her husband, I guess about 4 or 5 years ago, maybe a little more. They 
were there for Habitat for Humanity, and they both got out in blue 
jeans with their hammers and nails, building houses. She was with Jimmy 
in all those things. She wanted to help people and give people a better 
opportunity.
  I have visited The Carter Center, and that is a great tribute to 
their years in the White House and what they did to try to make a 
better world, which we all should and they did. I had great regard for 
her.
  Last night, I was at the White House for the Christmas party, and it 
was a marvelous event. Dr. Biden has done a great job in decorating the 
White House in the way that it should be for people who see the beauty 
and the wonder of Christmas.
  One of the portraits I saw when I walked in was of Rosalynn Carter. 
It was in the hallway when you walk in, and I had to stop to look at it 
on the way going in and on the way coming out and made a point to go 
over and look at the name of the artist who painted the portrait. It 
looked exactly like this, but that is what Rosalynn Carter looked like. 
I thought she was just the perfect expression of love and simplicity, 
and she belonged there. She belonged there so much.
  I appreciate what she gave to our country and Jimmy Carter, too. I 
can mention Jimmy Carter. I did once have an opportunity on a flight 
from Atlanta to D.C.--a Delta flight, of course--to have Jimmy Carter 
on my flight. He got up and walked through. He shook hands with me, and 
I thought: ``Wow, that is pretty cool. The President is shaking hands 
with me.'' Then I turned around and noticed he shook hands with every 
single person on the airplane because he wanted everybody to have the 
opportunity to know they had shaken hands with a President of the 
United States.
  That is the way the Carters were. They wanted to share. They wanted 
to recognize individuals and give them what they had received in life, 
which are certain moments that they will never forget and will hold 
dear.
  I thank Rosalynn Carter for her life. I thank her for the service, 
which I watched just about all of, and the wonderful expressions by her 
children and grandchildren, and the rendition of ``Imagine'' by Trisha 
Yearwood and Garth Brooks, which I think she would have appreciated. I 
thank her for her life and for what she gave America.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank Sanford Bishop for inviting me to participate 
today.
  Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for those 
words.
  Mrs. Rosalynn Carter did so much in her lifetime, and she held many 
leadership positions throughout it. She received numerous awards and 
recognitions for her work. She served as the honorary chairperson of 
the Georgia Special Olympics from 1971 to 1975. She was a member of the 
Menninger Foundation board of trustees from 1986 to 2003. She was the 
chair of the International Women Leaders for Mental Health, an honorary 
fellow of the American Psychiatric Association, and a board member 
emeritus of the National Mental Health Association. She was awarded the 
Dorothea Dix Award by the Mental Illness Foundation, the Jefferson 
Award for Greatest Public Service Benefiting the Disadvantaged, and the 
Rhoda and Bernard Sarnat International Prize in Mental Health. She was 
inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame in 2001. Most notably, 
in 1999, Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter were jointly awarded the 
Presidential Medal of Freedom, the Nation's highest civilian honor, by 
President Bill Clinton.
  Rosalynn Carter was a great person not because of the titles that she 
held, not because of the organizations that she served, but Rosalynn 
was great measured by the true standard of greatness set by Jesus that 
he or she who is great among you shall be your servant, and he who is 
greatest shall be servant to all. Certainly, without a doubt, Rosalynn 
Carter measures up.
  Mr. Speaker, in concluding this Special Order hour, I thank my 
colleague, Austin Scott, for working with me in order to organize 
today's event, and I thank the Members who joined us in commemorating 
the life and legacy of former First Lady Rosalynn Carter.
  Though Rosalynn Carter has departed from this Earth, countless 
Americans--in fact, countless people worldwide--will continue to have a 
better life because of her compassion, dedication, and public service.
  We will miss her dearly, but she will remain an inspiration for 
generations to come.
  To the Carter family, I extend my heartfelt condolences and prayers.
  Mr. Speaker, I will close by reflecting on the fact that I attended 
the wreath-laying ceremony at Georgia Southwestern State University 
last week and the memorial services for Rosalynn Carter held at the 
Glenn Memorial United Methodist Church at Emory University. During the 
event, several poignant eulogies were offered, but I would like to 
close this Special

[[Page H6138]]

Order by reading one that was special from her daughter, Amy Lynn 
Carter. She said: ``My mom spent most of her life in love with my dad. 
Their partnership and love story was a defining feature of her life. 
Because he isn't able to speak to you today, I am going to share some 
of his words about loving and missing her.
  ``This is from a letter he wrote 75 years ago while serving in the 
Navy: `My darling, every time I have ever been away from you, I have 
been thrilled when I returned to discover just how wonderful you are. 
While I am away, I try to convince myself that you really are not--
could not be--as sweet and beautiful as I remember. But when I see you, 
I fall in love with you all over again. Does that seem strange to you? 
Good-bye, Darling, until tomorrow.' ''

  Sir Thomas Gray wrote in his ``Elegy Written in a Country 
Churchyard'':

     Full many a gem of purest ray serene
     The dark unfathom'd caves of oceans bear:
     Full many a flower is born to blush unseen,
     And waste its sweetness on the desert air.

  We are all so thankful that Rosalynn Smith Carter did not waste her 
sweetness on the desert air. From Plains, Georgia, to the United 
States, for the State of Georgia, and throughout the world and for all 
of humankind, she truly made a difference.
  We have all been truly blessed by Rosalynn Smith Carter.
  As I close, I leave these words: To God be the glory for the life and 
the legacy of Rosalynn Smith Carter.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

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