Former President Jimmy Carter and wife Rosalynn celebrate 75th wedding anniversary: “I’ve been very happy”

Former President Jimmy Carter and his loving wife Rosalynn celebrated their 75th wedding anniversary. They hold the title of the longest-married presidential couple, and their love story is truly beautiful.

The Carters tied the knot on July 7, 1946, in their hometown of Plains, Georgia, where they still live and where they celebrated the special milestone.

 

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Rosalynn’s family lived next to Jimmy’s and she was a very good friend with his sister. She remembers that Jimmy’s sister had a photo of him on the wall and she fell in love with that photo showing young Jimmy wearing his uniform.

During a visit of his hometown from the Naval Academy, Jimmy laid eyes on Rosalynn and immediately knew she was the one. Speaking to People, the former president said: “She was beautiful and innocent, and there was a resonance.” They started dating but didn’t marry until she turned 18 because she made a promise to her dying father that she won’t marry before finishing school.

During the first years of marriage, the couple constantly moved places because Jimmy was often deployed at different locations. However, Rosalynn didn’t mind that. In fact, she loved being on the move with him and when he made the decision to give up his career in the Navy, she wasn’t glad. “I had been self-sufficient and independent from my mother and Jimmy’s mother,” she told The New York Times.

 

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Being married for so many years must be a challenge, but the Carters don’t see it that way. They have always been by each other’s side; during their presidency and while he battled cancer. Speaking of the secret to a long and happy marriage, both Rosalynn and Jimmy say that they have never gone to bed angry at one another and know how to enjoy the simple things that many take for granted, like cherishing each other’s company.

“We’ve just grown closer and closer together,” Jimmy said.

The two share a lot of interests together, like bird watching and helping the community through the organization Habitat for Humanity, which builds homes for people in need.

They also give each other the space to do the things that fulfil them. “Jimmy and I are always looking for things to do together,” Rosalynn told CBS42. “Each [person] should have some space. That’s really important.”

 

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Both Rosalynn and Jimmy say that with years, their feelings and love for one another only grew bigger. The only time they remember they got into a fight was when they wrote a book together.

“I know for my sake,” Jimmy said, “it’s been the best thing I’ve ever had to happen to me — marrying Rosalynn and living together for so long, growing to know each other more and more intimately every day in married life.

“I’ve been very happy,” he said. “and I love her more now than I did to begin with — which is saying a lot because I loved her a lot.”

Congratulations on your wedding anniversary.

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