How Jimmy Carter Tragically Lost His Grandson Jeremy In 2015

There aren't many presidents who made as great of an impact after they left office as Jimmy Carter and his legacy did. Carter went from being elected Democratic governor of Georgia to serving as the 39th president of the United States. He served for one term — from 1977 to 1981 — but he will be most remembered for his decades of human rights work. When Carter left the White House, he founded the Carter Center in 1982 which was committed "to human rights and the alleviation of human suffering." Through this foundation, Carter worked to improve global conditions and promote democracy, winning him the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002. 

The former president traveled for his work well into his 90s, but he slowed down in the last decade of his life due to his health. He underwent treatment for melanoma in 2015 and he had a rough year in 2019; Carter went to the hospital multiple times because of fall-related injuries and once for a urinary tract infection. After the Carter Center announced on February 18 that Carter had been moved to hospice care to live out the remainder of his days, he died on December 29, 2024. He was the longest-living president, dying at 98. While that was definitely an achievement, he outlived his grandson who sadly died suddenly at a young age years ago. 

The Carter family suffered a tragedy when Jimmy Carter's grandson, Jeremy Davis Carter, died of a heart attack in December 2015. Jeremy was the son of Jeff (Jimmy Carter's third oldest child and youngest son) and Annette Carter. People reported that it happened while he was home with his mother; she performed CPR on him until the medics came to rush him to the hospital. Josh Carter, Jeremy's older brother, wrote a heartfelt blog post about his death, noting that doctors, of course, worked hard to save his brother. However, his heart stopped again at the hospital, and after 10 more minutes of CPR the doctors told the family that if he came back after all of this, he would have serious brain damage. The family chose to have them stop and he died not long afterward. He was 28 years old.

Former President Carter told the congregation of his Georgia church not long after Jeremy died. CNN reported that even after Carter made the announcement, he went on to teach Sunday school, which he had done for years. "[President Carter] was shaken," Maranatha Baptist Church Rev. Jeremy Shoulta said. "He was obviously sad although he was able to teach and he was able to present the lesson as well as he always has. But it was apparent to everyone there that this was weighing on him very heavily."

Jeremy's mother, Annette, died in 2021 at 68 years old.

Jimmy Carter and his wife, Rosalynn Carter, created a large family that included Jeremy Carter. In total, Jimmy and Rosalynn had four children and 22 grandchildren and great-grandchildren, according to People. "We have a big family now. We have 22 grandchildren and great-grandchildren, 38 of us in all," he told Jake Tapper on "The Lead with Jake Tapper" in 2015, months before Jeremy died. "So, we try to hold our family together and just enjoy the family life." Their four children include John William "Jack," James Earl "Chip," Donnel Jeffrey "Jeff," and their only daughter, Amy Lynn Carter.

Jimmy's eldest son, Jack Carter, got into politics like his father, and Amy Lynn was involved in political activism from a young age, protesting apartheid and CIA recruitment at different points. Funny enough, Amy became well-known when she chose to read during a presidential State Dinner at age nine instead of participating. One of Jimmy's grandsons, Jason Carter, Jack's son, is on The Carter Center's board of trustees. "It's been awe-inspiring to watch my grandfather live out his values for all these decades," he told People. "My earliest memories are from his years in the White House, and I've grown up witnessing and learning from his faith and his belief in equal treatment and respect for all people."