Thousands of miles from Washington, where Jimmy Carter’s funeral is scheduled next week, an Indian village named after the former US president fondly remembers his visit almost 50 years ago and pays tribute to him.
Carter, a one-term president since 1977 who died Sunday at age 100, will receive a state funeral at Washington National Cathedral on Thursday.
Carterpuri, or “Carter’s Village,” is a dusty village about 20 miles from Delhi. It was called Daulatpur Nasirabad when Carter’s mother, Lillian, lived and worked there briefly as a nurse and volunteer in the 1960s.
“The villagers dressed his wife in traditional costumes… He (Carter) also tried a hookah,” one resident, Moti Ram, recalled of the time Carter, accompanied by his wife, Rosalynn, walked through the village .
Preparations were made months before the Jan. 3, 1978, visit, some villagers told the ANI news agency, in which Reuters has a minority stake. The town was renovated and welcome programs were held in its main square.
The residents were so captivated by the Carters’ visit that they renamed their village in their honor.
