When I Met Jimmy Carter: "Jimmy, Poison Ivy, and a Tattooed Moon" by Randell Jones

- Pleased to meet you, sir.

If you’re lucky, you get to meet some special people in your life, including a President or two.

Randell Jones is the editor and publisher of the Personal Story Publishing Project and producer/host of “6-minute Stories” podcast.

He writes and speaks as Daniel Boone Footsteps. also RandellJones.com

He lives in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

Author’s Talk

I met Jimmy Carter over half his life ago, in 1971. He did a lot in his 100 years, the greatest and most memorable contributions to mankind in the last half of those 10 decades, after he was free from the political burdens of governing and could focus less encumbered on serving people worldwide. He did that with grace and passion and vision and humility. We are better for his presence among us.  

I connected with President Carter through another common effort. He signed the legislation in 1980 which created the 330-mile Overmountain Victory National Historic Trail. Then-US Congressman James T. Broyhill of North Carolina introduced that legislation in 1977. In 2015, I created a memento for Senator Broyhill to send to Jimmy Carter on the 40th anniversary of the first commemorative march in 1975 of the Overmountain Victory Trail, which led to its designation as a national historic trail. Included with the memento, I sent to President Carter an autographed copy of my book, Before They Were Heroes at King’s Mountain, the battle fought at the end of the overmountain march. I received a thank you note from the Carter Center, “signed” by Jimmy Carter. I did not bother to mention that we had met before. My knowing it was enough. - Rest in Peace, Mr. Carter. Godspeed.