The Carter gravesite in Plains Georgia.

The Carter gravesite opened quietly on Thursday, with many of the visitors from Plains. Maranatha Pastor Ashley Guthas was one of them. “I thought I was going to cry, but I didn’t, and maybe that’s because . . .one of my daughters was with me.”

The Americus trolley took residents from downtown Plains to the Carter gravesite. There were few visitors when Guthas arrived. Those who came slowly walked the grounds, enjoying the scenery. “A lot of long pauses standing before the actual graves, and it’d be neat to know what everyone was thinking when they’re standing there.”

Guthas described the beautiful grounds and butterfly garden. “My daughter and I sat and just watched the butterflies for quite some time, and that was just incredible.”
She praised the National Parks Service for the work they had put into readying the site. “The site is incredibly peaceful. I was really just at peace being there.”

With the Carters buried in Plains, many expect visitors will continue to frequent the small town. “Hopefully that’s going to happen, and that we’ll be able to build upon their legacy of inclusion and welcoming the world here, and that we’ll be able to carry that into future generations in different ways.”

Downtown businessman Philip Kurland was also one of the early visitors to the gravesite on Thursday. He described it as an emotional experience. “I was very impressed with it, the layout of it being a sharing place where you might have a picnic when you come to memorialize their graves.”

Kurland found visiting a peaceful way to connect with his memories of the Carters. “I miss the Carters, and I just felt the closeness with the Carters there in a spot that I might be able to spend hours, maybe reading a book, talking to tourists, looking at the lake.”

He also found it calming. “I plan on going out there often.”

Kurland believes others will feel similar emotions. “I think it will be overwhelming to the visitors, as far as them realizing that even in their passing, they wanted to give back, and have a space for people to enjoy, not just to feel sad or to memorialize them.”

He believes it will bring peace to many more. “I think it’s going to be a very positive thing for Plains, and a very positive thing for Sumter County, and a very positive thing for the whole country, whole world, because we get visitors from all over the world.”

Mayor of Plains, Joey Recker, made a visit to the gravesite after Rosalynn Carter was buried. Recker remembers the Carters as neighbors for whom he had a deep respect. He would often see them walking the property, holding hands, and wave from his back porch.

Recker shared his impression of the site. “I was more impressed by the simplicity of it, which I think is fitting with who they were and how they lived their lives.”

Recker believes the details of the gravesite and its location show the Carters’ love of Plains. “Not only was this home, but I think they planned things like this for a reason, because they know how important continued tourism and people visiting Plains is important to this town, and they love this town so much that was just another way they could contribute.”

Recker believes the decision shows how strongly home shaped who the Carters were. “They never forgot where they came from, and we’re not going to forget where they came from.”