Rosalynn Carter marks 96th birthday at home with the former president, butterflies and ice cream

Rosalynn Carter celebrates her 96th birthday at home with former President Jimmy Carter, which comes as she navigates dementia and he receives hospice care.

ATLANTA — Rosalynn Carter will celebrate her 96th birthday at home Friday with her husband, former President Jimmy Carter, and other family members, while the surrounding community of Plains, Georgia, honors the former first lady’s years of public health advocacy.

The latest milestone comes as Rosalynn Carter navigates dementia and the former president, now 98, continues to receive hospice care. Yet they remain together in the same small town where they were born, married and that anchored Jimmy Carter’s victorious 1976 presidential campaign.

Rosalynn will have a quiet birthday celebration, according to The Carter Center, the human rights organization the pair opened in Atlanta after losing his 1980 reelection bid. She plans to eat cupcakes and peanut butter ice cream, nodding to the couple’s experience as Georgia peanut farmers, which became part of their political branding.

Former first lady Rosalynn Carter diagnosed with dementia, family saysMay 30, 202301:08She also will release butterflies in the Carters’ garden; her love of butterflies traces back to childhood. Extended family and friends also plan for several butterfly releases around Plains, including at the small public garden next to the home where Eleanor Rosalynn Smith was born on Aug. 18, 1927.

The Rosalynn Carter Institute for Caregivers is sponsoring a screening of a new film, “Unconditional,” which focuses on the challenges people face as caregivers for sick, aging and disabled loved ones. The event, scheduled for 6:30 p.m. at Plains High School, is open to the public.