Remembering Jimmy Carter

Jimmy Carter was a president, a peacemaker, a public health champion — and my friend.

When he left the White House, Carter used the power of his name, character and influence to work on challenges that were too obscure or daunting for others to deal with. I believe he did it because he felt it was the right thing to do. His humble beginnings as a farm boy in southern Georgia helped him relate to the challenges and aspirations of everyday people, respectfully partnering with them to improve their own lives.

I worked closely with Carter as vice president for health programs at the Carter Center and later as special adviser to the center’s Guinea Worm Eradication Program. I traveled with him to various places, mostly in Africa, an average of once a year from 1988 to 2010. Those trips involved long flights and sometimes lengthy rides to remote villages, giving us ample opportunity to talk about everything from birding to boatbuilding to genealogy.

In 2007, we flew separately — he from Atlanta and I from Chicago, where I live — to start a visit to four countries. My flight ran into trouble early and had to return to O’Hare International Airport. It was unnerving. When my wife, Ernie, and I finally arrived in Ghana a day late, Carter greeted me with a big hug.

I suffered a near-fatal heart attack in early 2015. Later that year, I was sitting outside a Carter Center conference room, waiting for a meeting to begin, when Carter and his Secret Service detail strode by on their way to his office. I expected only a wave, but he diverted

See HOPKINS, page A10

Dr. Donald R. Hopkins Tribune Commentary