“A strong nation,
like a strong person,
can afford to be gentle, firm,
thoughtful, and restrained.
It can afford to extend
a helping hand to others.”
~ Jimmy Carter

Jimmy Carter was the real thing. I expect that he will go down in history as the American leader who, throughout his entire lifetime, most exemplified the trait of integrity.

I’m not a historian. My knowledge of and interest in politics is limited. I do, however, have a fairly good memory. In the early 1970’s, following the debacle of the Nixon administration and Watergate, the United States found themselves with the only leader to serve as President without ever having been elected into the Executive Branch of the government. In the wake of Vice President Spiro Agnew’s resignation, Gerald Ford was appointed to replace him. When Richard Nixon resigned a short time later, Ford became the 38th President of the United States.

In the 1976 election, President Ford was challenged by an unknown peanut farmer from Georgia by the name of Jimmy Carter. Carter won the November election, becoming the 39th President of the United States. I will leave it to historians to judge his presidency.

Carter’s greatest contribution to the world is the life he lived after leaving the White House in 1981. For the next 40+ years, the former President worked tirelessly with Habitat for Humanity to provide affordable housing for thousands of Americans. Carter didn’t wear a suit and tie or take on an administrative position in the organization. He didn’t work in an air conditioned office with Ethan Allen furniture. Rather, the former president donned blue jeans, work boots, a Habitat for Humanity work shirt, hard hat, tool belt, and, often times, a bandanna around his neck. Carter worked with the tools of the construction trade to labor side-by-side with other volunteers and with those who would eventually live in the homes they built.

The many pictures of President Jimmy Carter in his post-White House years are not photo-ops so commonly seen of politicians doing five minutes of volunteer work for the cameras. Carter’s commitment to Habitat was genuine. He certainly must have been aware of photographers snapping photos of him hammering nails, sawing wood, or framing a home, but the former President was not posing for the cameras. His volunteer work was motivated by genuine kindness, compassion, and love.

During a recent visit to Los Angeles, I had the opportunity to visit the headquarters of Homeboy Industries, where, like Jimmy Carter, Father Gregory Boyle, S.J. works side-by-side with former gang members to provide opportunities for them to live productive lives and to be contributing members of society. While there, I purchased a hat embroidered with this quote by Father Greg: “Kindness is the only strength there is.” 

Some people just get it!