PLAINS, Ga. — Longtime residents in Plains, Georgia, are sharing stories of the Carters following the death of the former first lady.
Rosalynn Carter was laid to rest Wednesday following three days of tribute services. The Carter Center said she died at the age of 96 on Nov. 19.. The Georgia native was married to former President Jimmy Carter for 77 years. He turned 99 in October.
11Alive spoke to longtime residents who said the Carters made it their mission to make sure everyone was treated with love.
For Vernita Sampson and Clyde Tullis, Plains is home.
“My grandfather was a sharecropper producing peanuts, corn and all that," Sampson said.
Sampson still lives on the land. She said she grew up with the Carter children.
“A very warm, peaceful family, I even got a chance to go to school with Amy Carter," she said.
For Tullis, their family worked together.
“My dad and President Carter, well, he wasn’t president then but we were bringing our products to the Carter Warehouse," Tullis said.
Both said the couple set an example for showing love to everyone in the community.
“To me, they never showed racism or care about the color you were," Sampson said. "The bottom line was love."
In his 1971 inaugural address as governor of Georgia, Jimmy Carter famously said, "The time for racial discrimination is over."
To their longtime neighbors in Plains, those were more than words.
“Humility, honor, and, like I said before, love. Love your neighbors," Sampson said. "I believe that what they did for this community and communities all around the world. Love."