Former US President Jimmy Carter Celebrates 75th Wedding Anniversary
2021-07-07
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1Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and his wife Rosalynn celebrate the 75th anniversary of their wedding today.
2The Carters were married in 1946, one year after they met.
3At the time, the future president was a student at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland.
4He was home in Plains, Georgia for a visit when his sister set him up him with Eleanor Rosalynn Smith for a date.
5Carter won the presidential vote in 1976 and served as the country's 39th president for one term.
6He was defeated by Ronald Reagan in the 1980 election.
7Carter is 96 years old and his wife is 93.
8At 96, Carter has lived the longest of any of America's 45 presidents.
9Carter has often said the greatest decision he ever made was asking Rosalynn to marry him.
10He said it does not compare to being commander-in-chief or being in charge of a nuclear submarine during his time in the Navy.
11The Carters discussed what keeps them together after so many years.
12"It's a full partnership," the former president said.
13Every day, he said, the two make sure they communicate and fix any problems that come up before they go to bed.
14"We don't go to sleep with some remaining differences between us."
15Jimmy and Rosalynn also keep a longtime tradition alive each day: reading the Bible out loud together each night, even if they are apart.
16Even at their age, the two still try to find activities to do together.
17Rosalynn spoke about attempting to find common interests.
18But at the same time, Rosalynn said they each need some time alone.
19"That's really important," she said.
20Over 40 years ago, Rosalynn Carter established some of the traditions carried on by future First Ladies.
21She set up her own office in the White House.
22She worked on making laws for health care and mental health.
23She continued doing that work as the pair moved back into private life, working at the Carter Center in Atlanta, Georgia after Jimmy's four years as president.
24In recent years, some well-known American couples announced breakups.
25These include Amazon chief Jeff Bezos and his wife MacKenzie, as well as Microsoft founder Bill Gates and his wife Melinda.
26So it seems correct for the Carters to celebrate staying together so long.
27The couple admitted, however, that they experienced some rough spots.
28In 1953, when Carter was in his Navy career, his father died.
29He decided his family would move back to Georgia and start working in agriculture.
30However, he did not discuss this plan with his wife.
31Thinking back on it, Carter said he made a mistake.
32His wife was not happy with the move.
33Now, he said, he cannot imagine not discussing a major life change with his wife.
34The couple said getting through that difficult time was important for their relationship.
35It turned out that Jimmy needed help from Rosalynn because she knew more about farming than he did.
36"He would take my advice about things," she said.
37Later, Jimmy decided to get into politics without discussing the choice with Rosalynn.
38But, as it turned out, she was fine with that decision.
39"I had the best time," she said, speaking about the campaign process.
40In the years after their time in the White House, the Carters continued to work to support equal rights.
41The former president criticized the part of Christianity that he follows - Southern Baptism - during an event in 2006.
42He said the denomination was too "rigid" and prevented women from being equal partners in marriage.
43The Carters also want the church to recognize same-sex marriage.
44He said "the church is evolving" on that issue.
45The couple is having an anniversary party later this week in Plains.
46Even after their years holding important dinners at the White House, they are still not completely at ease at big parties.
47"We have too many people invited," Rosalynn Carter said of the planned event.
48I'm Dan Friedell.
1Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and his wife Rosalynn celebrate the 75th anniversary of their wedding today. 2The Carters were married in 1946, one year after they met. 3At the time, the future president was a student at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. He was home in Plains, Georgia for a visit when his sister set him up him with Eleanor Rosalynn Smith for a date. 4Carter won the presidential vote in 1976 and served as the country's 39th president for one term. He was defeated by Ronald Reagan in the 1980 election. 5Carter is 96 years old and his wife is 93. At 96, Carter has lived the longest of any of America's 45 presidents. 6Carter has often said the greatest decision he ever made was asking Rosalynn to marry him. He said it does not compare to being commander-in-chief or being in charge of a nuclear submarine during his time in the Navy. 7The Carters discussed what keeps them together after so many years. 8"It's a full partnership," the former president said. 9Every day, he said, the two make sure they communicate and fix any problems that come up before they go to bed. "We don't go to sleep with some remaining differences between us." 10Jimmy and Rosalynn also keep a longtime tradition alive each day: reading the Bible out loud together each night, even if they are apart. 11Even at their age, the two still try to find activities to do together. Rosalynn spoke about attempting to find common interests. 12But at the same time, Rosalynn said they each need some time alone. "That's really important," she said. 13Over 40 years ago, Rosalynn Carter established some of the traditions carried on by future First Ladies. She set up her own office in the White House. She worked on making laws for health care and mental health. She continued doing that work as the pair moved back into private life, working at the Carter Center in Atlanta, Georgia after Jimmy's four years as president. 14In recent years, some well-known American couples announced breakups. These include Amazon chief Jeff Bezos and his wife MacKenzie, as well as Microsoft founder Bill Gates and his wife Melinda. So it seems correct for the Carters to celebrate staying together so long. 15The couple admitted, however, that they experienced some rough spots. 16In 1953, when Carter was in his Navy career, his father died. He decided his family would move back to Georgia and start working in agriculture. However, he did not discuss this plan with his wife. 17Thinking back on it, Carter said he made a mistake. His wife was not happy with the move. 18Now, he said, he cannot imagine not discussing a major life change with his wife. 19The couple said getting through that difficult time was important for their relationship. It turned out that Jimmy needed help from Rosalynn because she knew more about farming than he did. 20"He would take my advice about things," she said. 21Later, Jimmy decided to get into politics without discussing the choice with Rosalynn. But, as it turned out, she was fine with that decision. "I had the best time," she said, speaking about the campaign process. 22In the years after their time in the White House, the Carters continued to work to support equal rights. The former president criticized the part of Christianity that he follows - Southern Baptism - during an event in 2006. He said the denomination was too "rigid" and prevented women from being equal partners in marriage. 23The Carters also want the church to recognize same-sex marriage. He said "the church is evolving" on that issue. 24The couple is having an anniversary party later this week in Plains. 25Even after their years holding important dinners at the White House, they are still not completely at ease at big parties. 26"We have too many people invited," Rosalynn Carter said of the planned event. 27I'm Dan Friedell. 28Bill Barrow wrote this story for the Associated Press. Dan Friedell adapted it for Learning English. Bryan Lynn was the editor. 29Who are the oldest living leaders in your country? Tell us in the Comments Section and visit our Facebook page. 30_______________________________________________________________ 31Words in This Story 32date - n. a romantic meeting when two people go out and do something together 33denomination - n. a religious group that has slightly different beliefs from other groups that share the same religion 34rigid - adj. not able to be changed easily 35evolve - v. to develop over time