I first met then Governor Jimmy Carter in Virginia in 1974. Dick Barton, a local Virginia political activist, and I, then known asd Pat Baldi, were the co-chairs of the fundraising committee for Joseph Fisher of Virginia’s election to the U.S. Congress. We were in charge of putting together one of many fundraising ventures, including a huge event at the Virginia historical home of former State Senator Clive Du Val, Salona.

Unfortunately, Joe Fisher was in the hospital when the event occurred, but the fundraiser was a great success. Our two special guests were Governor Jimmy Carter of Georgia and U.S. Senator Ted Kennedy. Gov. Carter arrived early and stayed late. He met every person at the event and spent time talking to each one of us personally. Among the political activists, we wondered what office he was running for next.

For me personally, I had worked on the McGovern-Shriver campaign in 1972. When Sarge decided to run for President in 1976, I became one of his Deputy Campaign Managers. Starting with a small staff, that meant travelling across the country, particularly to caucus states where I had done a lot of work in the past.

As a result, I ran into Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, especially in many trips to Iowa. Then Governor Carter and I would talk about the Peace Corps, life, a vision for the future. I had been a Peace Corps nurse in Brazil. Gov. Carter’s mother was a nurse and had served with Peace Corps in India. There were lots of other brief conversations in the coming months, and the Governor would say he would be looking for me after the primaries.

Carter won the 1976 Democratic nomination, and I was at the Democratic National Convention as a guest. When President-elect Carter won the presidency, I was on the Inaugural staff. In 1977, I was appointed to the U.S. Agency for International Development. I would stay there for 5 years before being ousted by the Reagan Administration.

Others will be writing about their experiences during the Carter Administration. As someone with a deep commitment to the environment and women’s health, it was exciting to see the advances of commitment to these issues. The Global 2000 Study was the first to really look at the future and sustainability of the planet. Malcolm Butler and I were liaisons for USAID to the study, and I brought those issues to a seat on the National Security Council’s population subcommittee.

After three years as the Assistant Director for Administration, Center for Population and Family Health at Columbia University, I would take a position with the National Audubon Society to work on human population and the environment. My work on healing the planet would extend domestically and internationally. In 1992 work with different organization began a comprehensive preparation on the U.N. International Conference on Population and Development. As a member of the 1994 U.S. delegation, I was involved in meetings in Washington, D.C.; at the U.N. in New York City, and at the conference in Cairo, Egypt. We knew that former President Carter was on his way to Cairo when his plane had trouble, and his trip was cancelled.

Former President Carter received the Audubon Medal from the National Audubon Society in November of 1994. We took some time aside to talk about all of the accomplishments of the U.N. conference he had missed. He was eager to get a private perspective on the human and environmental commitments made by all the countries of the world.

In life, we always seek purpose. That is what former President Carter did. He changed lives around the world. Mostly he taught us what living fully can accomplish. No task too small. There are so many ways to heal the world, use our voices, honor the preciousness of life. Thank him for being a model by using your gifts.