Jimmy Carter And Rosalynn Carter Celebrate 76 Years Of Marriage: "Life Has Been An Adventure"

Georgia’s favorite couple and the longest presidential married couple is celebrating their 76th anniversary. Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter tied the knot on July 7, 1946 in Plains Methodist Church. Jimmy, 97, and Rosalynn, 94, still live together in the same tiny Georgia town where they grew up. According to NPR, the pair first met when he was three and she was a day old! Jimmy's mother was a nurse who helped care for baby Rosalynn and the families lived just three miles apart. Over the years, Rosalynn became best friends with Jimmy's younger sister. When she was 17 years old she went on their first-ever date in 1945. He was 20 years old at the time. A year later they married and the two have been together for over seven decades!

According to WSB-TV, over the years they've traveled across the globe not only as man and wife but also as Naval officer and military spouse, an American president and first lady and finally as human rights and public health ambassadors. In 2019, the pair also became the longest-married couple in presidential history when they beat the record previously held by the late George H.W. Bush and Barbara Bush, who were married for 73 years. The Carters have four children, 12 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren.

“My biggest secret is to marry the right person if you want to have a long-lasting marriage,” Carter said a year back when the couple celebrated their 75th anniversary. “Every day there needs to be reconciliation and communication between the two spouses...We don’t go to sleep with some remaining differences between us.” Rosalynn Carter added, “Jimmy and I are always looking for things to do together,” she said. “Each (person) should have some space. That’s really important.” Last year, they celebrated in style with over 300-plus invitees but this year the pair opted for a quiet celebration in their Georgia home. For their anniversary party last year, Rosalyn admitted, according to 11 Alive that life so far "has been an adventure" since meeting the man she would marry. "It's wonderful to celebrate with so many friends. It's just so good to have you all here and I thank you for making it a good evening, a good time for us to be here and to be with friends we care about very much," she added, saying the guests had helped make the day "very special."

The couple still spends time together and remains active in working with Habitat for Humanity and various philanthropy endeavors through the Carter Center, reports FOX 7. According to the Jimmy Carter Library, on his 75th birthday, When Carter was asked to name the most important thing he had ever done, he replied "Marrying Rosalynn."