A Tribute to Jimmy Carter’s Legacy of Peace, Humanity and Unwavering Kindness
President Jimmy Carter and Dominic Calabrese
The historic Camp David accords, which provided a framework for peace between Israel and Egypt. The Panama Canal Treaties. The establishment of the federal Departments of Education and Energy. The intense negotiations that ultimately led to the freeing of U.S. hostages who were held captive in Iran.
And in his post-presidential years, Habitat for Humanity, which has provided housing for the homeless, and the Carter Center, which has championed the causes of freedom and democracy along with improving health care in more than 80 countries.
These notable achievements most readily come to mind when Americans think of their 39th President, Jimmy Carter, who passed away Sunday at the age of 100 after several months in home hospice care. A successful peanut farmer, nuclear engineer and governor of Georgia, Mr. Carter served as U.S. president from 1977 to 1981.
Public realtions veteran and 2014 Publicity Club of Chicago (PCC) Lifetime Achievement Winner Rick Jasculca, who has known President Carter for nearly 50 years, offers a personal perspective on the former president and longtime friend: "I'll never forget the time when Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter were in Chicago to attend a meeting. They were staying at the Palmer House downtown and had some free time on their schedule. They reached out to my mother and invited her to come for a visit. They wound up spending hours just talking. That's what made the Carters so special. Jimmy Carter was a very human president who genuinely liked people and treated everyone he met with the utmost respect."
Jasculca adds that Mr. Carter always committed to achieving excellence in whatever endeavor he undertook, be it as a student, naval officer, engineer, farmer, governor and president. "After all, Jimmy Carter's autobiography, which came out during his first presidential run in 1976, was called "Why Not the Best."
Jasculca and his partner, Jim Terman, who also won the club's Lifetime Achievement Award in 2014, helped secure the former President's appearance as keynote speaker at PCC's Golden Trumpet Awards that year. Through their highly respected firm, Jasculca Terman Public Relations (JTPR), the pair has collaborated with Mr. Carter on numerous presidential initiatives and campaigns ever since his White House years.
They worked alongside then PCC President Jon Kaplan who is credited for switching the Trumpet Awards ceremony to evenings. The 2014 event, which showcased President Carter as keynoter and legendary broadcaster Bill Kurtis as emcee, drew an overflow crowd of 600 people into the Palmer House ballroom.
"When we asked President Carter if he would come, to my surprise, he said yes right away," Jasculca smiles.
Kaplan recalls that when the former president arrived at the Palmer House, he made time to greet several VIPs prior to the awards dinner.
"I got to greet him, speak with him and pose for some photos," he says. "At that time, the president was close to 90 years old. However, I was struck by how spry and alert he was."
Kaplan notes that even at his advanced age, Mr. Carter was happy to "work the room," meet anyone who wanted to meet him, pose for as many photos as we wanted, and acted with kindness, dignity, generosity of spirit, and yet, also remained humble and approachable.
“I had found an old Carter for President button in an antique store and wore it on my lapel," Kaplan laughs. "President Carter saw it, and chuckled, and said he had a grandson going into politics and maybe, someday, that would be a relevant button again!"
Both Kaplan and Jasculca maintain that history will be kind to the former president.
"At a time when the nation was reeling from the aftermath of the Watergate scandal, Jimmy Carter came into office, pledging a government as good as the American people. He restored our trust in government and had many noteworthy accomplishments in foreign and domestic policy," Jasculca says. "His humanitarian efforts through Habitat for Humanity and the Carter Center have also inspired millions around the world."
Mr. Carter, who had been the oldest president in American history, will receive a full state funeral in both Washington, D.C. and Atlanta, Georgia. His late wife, former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, who also earned the nation's respect for her humanitarian work, died in 2023.
