Former President Jimmy Carter’s final journey began in Plains, Georgia, where his life began over 100 years ago. A motorcade with Carter’s flag-draped casket started at the Phoebe Sumter Medical Center in Americus, with former Secret Service agents serving as pallbearers. The procession will pass through Plains, his beloved hometown, and past his boyhood home on its way to Atlanta.
Carter, who passed away at the age of 100 at his home in Plains on December 29, is being accompanied by his family, including his four children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. The procession route in downtown Plains was lined with families paying their respects, some carrying flowers or wearing commemorative pins with Carter’s photo.
One young boy, 12-year-old Will Porter Shelbrock, traveled from Gainesville, Florida, with his grandmother to witness the start of Carter’s final journey. Shelbrock admires Carter for his humanitarian work, building houses, waging peace, and installing solar panels on the White House. Carter and his late wife Rosalynn, who passed away in November 2023, were both born in Plains and spent most of their lives in and around the town.
The procession will stop at Carter’s home on his family farm outside of Plains, where the National Park Service will ring the old farm bell 39 times to honor his place as the 39th president. His remains will then proceed to Atlanta for a moment of silence at the Georgia Capitol and a ceremony at the Carter Presidential Center.
Following that, Carter will lie in repose until Tuesday morning, when he will be transported to Washington to lie in state at the U.S. Capitol. His state funeral is scheduled for Thursday at Washington National Cathedral, followed by a private funeral at Maranatha Baptist Church in Plains, where he will be buried next to Rosalynn Carter.
The article was written by Bill Barrow, an Atlanta-based journalist who has covered national politics and multiple presidential campaigns for the AP since 2012. The rewritten content seamlessly integrates key points from the original article while providing a unique perspective on Jimmy Carter’s final journey.
