Rosalynn Carter

Rosalynn Eleanor Smith Carter, First Lady of the United States from 1976-1980, significantly raised public awareness of mental health issues by serving as honorary chair of the Presidential Commission on Mental Health. The work of the Commission led to the passage of the Mental Health System Act of 1980. Her founding and continued work on the "Every Child by Two" initiative has saved thousands of children's lives through immunization and spearheaded further public health immunization initiatives worldwide. Mrs. Carter has demonstrated a life-long dedication to the concerns of women and children, the poor and the mentally ill: contributing her active presence and policy expertise to the Policy Advisory Board of the Atlanta Project, the Last Acts coalition to improve end-of-life care, Habitat for Humanity, Project Interconnections that provides housing for the homeless and mentally ill, and the Friendship Force. Her books have aided thousands of people seeking assistance and guidance regarding mental health issues, care-giving and creating new paths in life. She is the recipient of numerous honors including the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor. Schools Attended: Plains High School, Georgia Southwestern College The birthplaces of their three sons reflected their varied military postings: John William was born in Virginia in 1947; James Earl III in Hawaii in 1950; and Donnel Jeffrey in Connecticut in 1952. (Their daughter, Amy, was born in Plains in 1967, long after Mr. Carter had left the Navy.) In addition to her husband, Mrs. Carter is survived by her four children; 11 grandchildren; 14 great-grandchildren, and her sister, Lillian Allethea Smith Wall. Her brothers, Murray and Jerrold, both died in 2003.