Former President Jimmy Carter, who died Sunday at the age of 100, will forever have a connection to the City of Williamsburg.
On April 18, 1990, Carter was the keynote speaker at what was then Cumberland College, which later became the University of the Cumberlands, during a dedication ceremony for the new O. Wayne Rollins Center.
“This day has become an important part of our history,” then Williamsburg Mayor Marcella Mountjoy said during the ceremony. “For years to come, the people of Williamsburg and Cumberland College will remember the day that Jimmy Carter came to town.”
The former president began his address with some humorous anecdotes putting the audience at ease, and then moved onto more serious subjects, such as the purpose of education and achieving personal greatness, Daryl Cornett wrote in the April 25, 1990, edition of the Whitley Republican-Corbin This Week newspaper, which would later become the News Journal.
“There is a total lack of relationship between even the greatest universities on the earth, those that are in our country, and the people in the third world who desperately need the benefits of what we know and of what we teach,” Carter said.
Carter encouraged the administration and faculty to not draw geographical boundaries around their circle of influence, but to reach out to better the world with the blessings they have been given.
“I’ve seen the universities of our great country become increasingly isolated from the communities around them,” Carter said.
Carter read a number of comments from high ranking officials of some of the countries of Africa to the crowd concerning third world countries views of western universities and colleges.
Some of the statements that he read from the Africans said that western schools were rarely relevant, that that the knowledge they held was not shared with those needing to know, and that one action would be better than 100 conferences held by colleges.
Carter challenged the college not to be satisfied with what it had already done, but to keep striving to expand upon its benefits.
Then Cumberland College President Dr. Jim Taylor listed a number of reasons why the school invited Carter to speak on the special occasion.
He said that Carter’s commitment to the work ethic, his concern for moral and ethical values, and his concern for human rights were all reasons that the college invited him to speak.
Carter addressed the crowd with words concerning education during the first part of his speech, but turned the later part in a more personal direction, asking the audience to think about the qualifications of personal greatness.
According to Carter, the answers for the question of “What is greatness” are determined by the standards that we use to measure it.
Carter encouraged the crowd to not measure personal greatness by temporal standards, such as wealth, fame or prominence, but to measure greatness by the qualities of integrity, honesty, dedication, service, compassion and love.
He warned against the danger of being arrogant because of our blessings and encouraged the audience to set the right kind of priorities.
“Where ever there is a small flame of truth and dedication to service and moral standards, it needs to be fanned into a more significant light that can bring warmth, peace and justice, and sharing far beyond the bounds of this university and far beyond the bounds we have set in our individual lives,” Carter said.
Carter left the audience with a bit of his wisdom from his own experience.
“Service to others may seem to be a sacrifice but invariably it turns out to be life’s greatest blessing,” he added.
Carter served as the 39th President of the United States from Jan. 20, 1977, to Jan. 20, 1981.
In accordance with the U.S. Flag Code and a proclamation from the White House, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear has directed that flags at all state office buildings be lowered to half-staff immediately and to stay at half-staff until sunset on Tuesday, Jan. 28, 2025, in honor of Carter.
“Jimmy Carter was a true American — he lived through his faith and values each and every day, lifting up his neighbors and serving our great country through kindness and compassion,” said Beshear. “Let us all learn from him and honor his memory by leading with love. Britainy and I are praying for the entire Carter family and our country as we mourn the loss of this American hero.”
U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell echoed similar sentiments with the following statement.
“President Carter lived a truly American dream. A devoutly religious peanut farmer from small-town Georgia volunteered to serve his country in uniform. He found himself manning cutting-edge submarines hundreds of feet beneath the ocean. He returned home and saved the family farm before feeling drawn to a different sort of public service. And less than 15 years after his first campaign for the state Senate, his fellow Americans elected him leader of the free world.
“Jimmy Carter’s character and commitment, just like his crops, were fruits of all-American soil. After every season when life led him to lofty service far from home, he came back home again, determined to plow his unique experiences and influence into helping others; into building and teaching and volunteering; into further enriching the same rich soil that had made his own life possible. President Carter served during times of tension and uncertainty, both at home and abroad. But his calm spirit and deep faith seemed unshakeable.”
