77 years together: Jimmy, Rosalynn Carter celebrate anniversary together in Plains, Georgia

The couple is marking their nearly eight decades married at their Plains, Georgia, home, The Associated Press reported.

The Carters married on July 7, 1946, in the same town where they currently live. But they have known each other much longer.

Jimmy Carter’s parents were friends with his wife’s parents. They were so connected that Jimmy’s mother was present at Rosalynn’s birth as the nurse who delivered her at her family’s home in 1927.

[ Rosalynn Carter: Things to know about the former first lady ]

Lillian Carter took her then-preschool-aged son to meet baby Rosalynn. Eventually, the two children became schoolmates.

When they got older, Rosalynn was friends with Ruth Carter, Jimmy’s sister, who was a matchmaker between Rosalynn and the U.S. Naval Academy midshipman.

He had asked her to marry but she first declined after promising her father that she would finish college first, CNN reported. Eventually, she accepted.

Jimmy and Rosalynn married in 1946 when he was 21 and she was 18, CNN reported. They left their hometown, not planning to return as permanent residents, the AP reported

[ ‘Plains is sad’: Town recalls Jimmy Carter’s legacy at church where he taught Sunday school ]

But when his father died, Jimmy Carter decided to leave military service and return to his family farm and warehouse business. He made the decision without discussing the plans with his wife, but she became his partner not only in marriage but also in the family business.

“I knew more on paper about the business than he did. He would take my advice about things,” Rosalynn told the AP when the couple celebrated their 75th anniversary in 2021.

The couple would go into politics, with Jimmy Carter first getting a seat in 1962 as state Senator and serving two terms, then serving as governor in 1971 and finally winning the presidency in 1976 and taking office in January 1977.

After he left office in 1981, the couple returned to Plains, where they live to this day. They established The Carter Center in Atlanta in 1982 and use it, along with the Rosalynn Carter Institute, to “resolve conflict, foster democracy and development, and fight hunger, disease and human right abuses in Asia, Africa, Central America, South America and the United States.” They also embarked on the mission together to volunteer with Habitat for Humanity.

[ Jimmy Carter: What you may not know about the former president and humanitarian ]

Recently, however, their health has taken a turn. Jimmy Carter, 98, has been in home hospice care since February, and months later, the family announced that Rosalyn, 95, was diagnosed with dementia. The family has given few updates other than saying that the couple continues to enjoy time with each other and friends and family members visit, the AP reported.

[ Former President Jimmy Carter enters hospice care at home ]

“As we have looked back at their legacy, it has been really wonderful to see the outpouring of support and respect and love,” their grandson Jason Carter said, according to the AP. “That word love is really the one that defines certainly their personal relationship, but also the way they approach this world.”

[ Former first lady Rosalynn Carter diagnosed with dementia ]