(The Hill) — The grandson of former President Jimmy Carter and former first lady Rosalynn Carter said the couple is “coming to the end” but remain together and in love.
The former president entered into hospice care earlier this year, his charity, The Carter Center, announced in February. In May, the former first lady was diagnosed with dementia.
Jason Carter, the couple’s grandson, is the chairman of The Carter Center and told USA Today on Thursday that they are happy.
“They are together. They are at home. They are in love, and I don’t think anyone gets more than that,” he said. “I mean, it’s a perfect situation for this time in their lives.”
Jason Carter said President Joe Biden still communicates with his grandfather “just to let him know that he’s continuing to think about my grandfather, pray for him.”
The former president’s grandson said he believes Biden and his grandfather share a connection of humble pasts despite each having served as president.
“He has lived in Plains, Georgia, in the same house that he built in the 1950s. And their ability to stay grounded in who they are, despite all of the things they’ve done in their life, is remarkable,” Jason Carter said of his grandparents. “And I think, frankly, Biden has that same kind of connection to who he was in, like simpler and more humble times despite having spent his entire life in Washington.”
Jason Carter said his grandfather faces “really significant physical challenges” as he nears his 99th birthday on Oct. 1, but he spends time with family and watching baseball games. His grandmother turned 96 in August and he said this time is a joyful moment despite her diagnosis.
Ahead of Jimmy Carter’s 99th birthday, The Carter Center is asking the public to help celebrate the former president with a video or photo message that will create a mosaic.
“Our mosaic project is a symbolic way to show how we all play a part in President Carter’s remarkable legacy of service to humanity,” according to The Carter Center website.