Former first lady Rosalynn Carter celebrates 94th birthday
Former president Jimmy Carter and his wife Rosalynn prior to the game between the Atlanta Falcons and the Cincinnati Bengals at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on September 30, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Scott Cunningham/Getty Images)
PLAINS, Ga. - Former first lady Rosalynn Carter is celebrating her 94th birthday on Wednesday.
Born in Plains, Georgia, on Aug. 18, 1927, Eleanor Rosalynn Smith was the oldest of four children. After her father died when she was just 13, she worked with her mother making dresses and helping watch her siblings while remaining in school. After a lot of hard work, she graduated and enrolled at Georgia Southwestern College in Americus.
It was at college that Smith started dating Jimmy, then a fresh-faced Navy recruit studying at the U.S. Naval Academy in Maryland.
One year later, on July 7, 1946, she walked down the aisle of Plains Methodist Church in their hometown and said "I do."
The humble ceremony would blossom into a life of civil service from the Gold Dome of Georgia to the White House and beyond.
Jimmy Carter, Rosalynn celebrate 75 years of marriage in hometown
Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and his wife Rosalyn attach siding to the front of a Habitat for Humanity home being built June 10, 2003 in LaGrange, Georgia. More than 90 homes are being built in LaGrange; Valdosta, Georgia; and Anniston, Alabama
According to the Jimmy Carter Library, on his 75th birthday, Carter was asked to name the most important thing he had ever done. His reply: "Marrying Rosalynn."
Their marriage produced three sons, one daughter, eight grandsons, three granddaughters, and two great-grandsons.
Bidens, Carters pose for a photo during visit to Plains
In July, she and Jimmy celebrated their 75th wedding anniversary in their hometown surrounded by their friends and celebrities. They're the longest-married presidential couple in history.
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