Former President Jimmy Carter, who died on Dec. 29 at the age of 100, will be honored Jan. 9 with a national funeral service.
The services for the longest-lived president officially began on Jan. 4 and have been held in Atlanta and Washington, D.C. During the five-day tribute to his life, a motorcade transported Carter from Phoebe Sumter Medical Center and traveled through Plains, Georgia, the hometown of the former president and his wife, Rosalynn Carter, who died in 2023. Then his remains were taken to his boyhood home, located next to his family’s farm.
Before his public funeral, a memorial service was held on Jan. 7 for the 39th President of the United States, who was transferred to the U.S. Capitol. His family and other politicians, such as Vice President Kamala Harris, attended the service and read eulogies celebrating Carter’s legacy and presidency.
Following the national funeral, there will be a final private service for the late president held at Maranatha Baptist Church in Plains, where he taught Sunday school.
Read on to learn about the tributes leading up to the service on Jan. 9, and find out more about the late president’s funeral procession.
When does Jimmy Carter’s national funeral service start?
Carter’s national funeral service will begin at the Washington National Cathedral on Thursday, Jan. 9 at 10 a.m. ET. The service will be preceded by a brief ceremony where his remains and his family will arrive at the cathedral after departing from the U.S. Capitol.
The funeral will conclude around 11 a.m. ET. His family will then depart for the Joint Base Andrews in Maryland and board the Special Air Mission 39 to fly to Georgia for the private ceremony in Plains.
How to watch the funeral service
Viewers can watch the entire series of public events and services on Jan. 9 at NBCNews.com. The national funeral service will also be shown on NBC News Now and TODAY All Day.
Who is expected to attend?
NBC News Priya Sridhar reported on TODAY that President Joe Biden — who previously declared Jan. 9 a national day of mourning when he addressed Carter’s death in a statement — will be in attendance and is expected to deliver a eulogy.
President-elect Donald Trump is expected to go to the funeral, as well, Sridhar reported.
The Guardian reports that former presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama will also attend.
What’s happened so far in the funeral procession for Jimmy Carter?
On Jan. 4, after his remains were taken to his childhood home, the late president’s journey to Atlanta began. His motorcade traveled to Georgia’s State Capitol for a moment of silence and then made it to the Carter Presidential Center. There, Carter was lying in repose as mourners paid their respects.
Vice President Kamala Harris, members of Congress and more officials joined Carter’s family for a service honoring him on Jan. 7 after he was taken to the U.S. Capitol rotunda to lie in state.
NBC News reported Harris, who was in middle school when Carter was elected, said during her eulogy, “Jimmy Carter was that all too rare example of a gifted man who also walks with humility, modesty and grace.”
She added, “He lived his faith, he served the people and he left the world better than he found it.”