WASHINGTON — It may only be February but the White House Historical Association unveiled on Wednesday a special tribute for former President Jimmy Carter: his own Christmas ornament.
Every year, the White House Historical Association creates an ornament to raise money for preservation efforts. This year, the WHHA is honoring the oldest living former U.S. president and the only one from Georgia.
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The 2024 ornament is made in America by a veteran-owned business. It starts with an anchor that represents Carter’s service in the U.S. Navy.
“And then there are different motifs and emblems both on the front and back related to his life and his presidency,” said Sarah Fling, historian with the White House Historical Association.
Fling spoke to Channel 2′s Linda Stouffer about the design. She said there are doves to symbolize Carter’s international peacemaking efforts that helped lead to a Nobel Peace Prize. The top features a submarine, the Seawolf class U.S.S. Jimmy Carter.
“He’s the only president qualified in submarines, and the USS Jimmy Carter is actually the only submarine to be named for a living president,” Fling said.
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The 39th President of the United States was in the White House from 1977 to 1981. Carter and his wife Rosalynn worked around the globe to make the world a better place.
Every time, they came back home to Plains, Georgia. The ornament has symbols of that, too.
“And then one of my favorite features is the fact that there are, of course, peanuts. And there are yellow blossoms on the ornaments as a way to acknowledge his upbringing, and then his work as a farmer and businessman in Plains, Georgia,” Fling said.
The first ornament of the bunch was sent to President Carter himself, so he could see it first.
Click here to purchase the ornament.
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