Plains, August 19, 2025 — The U.S. Postal Service unveiled the design Saturday for a new Forever stamp honoring former President Jimmy Carter, the Georgia peanut farmer who ascended to the White House and dedicated his long post-presidency to global humanitarian work. Carter died last December at the age of 100.
The stamp, which features a warm, lifelike 1982 oil painting of a smiling Carter, is scheduled to be released for purchase on Oct. 1 in Atlanta—a date that would have been his 101st birthday.
The design was revealed at a ceremony at the Jimmy Carter National Historical Park in his tiny hometown of Plains, a place that remained his anchor throughout a life spent on the world stage. The event brought together representatives from the Postal Service, the National Park Service, and the Friends of Jimmy Carter, the nonprofit that supports his legacy.
“In his support and leadership of his beloved community, state, and nation, he lent his quiet, thoughtful and deliberate energy around causes he believed in,” said Peter Pastre, the Postal Service’s vice president for government relations and public policy. “Jimmy Carter truly personified the best in America.”
Carter’s single term in the White House, from 1977 to 1981, was a study in contrasts. He arrived in Washington as an outsider, a progressive Southern Democrat who promised a government “as good and as honest as its people.” His presidency was marked by significant accomplishments and profound challenges, from crippling inflation and the Iran hostage crisis to major diplomatic victories.
He brokered the historic Camp David Accords between Israel and Egypt, established full diplomatic relations with China, and championed human rights as a central tenet of U.S. foreign policy. Domestically, he created the Departments of Energy and Education, appointed record numbers of women and minorities to government posts, and vastly expanded protected federal lands.
Yet it was after his defeat by Ronald Reagan in 1980 that Carter crafted one of the most consequential post-presidencies in American history. In 1982, he and his wife, Rosalynn, founded the Carter Center in Atlanta, an institution dedicated to advancing democracy, mediating conflicts, and eradicating disease in the world’s most impoverished nations.
His work monitoring elections and building homes for Habitat for Humanity made him a global symbol of pragmatic idealism. In 2002, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, an honor that cemented his reputation far beyond the political arena.
The stamp’s artwork is a testament to that enduring spirit. Painted by artist Herbert E. Abrams in 1982 as a life study for the official White House portrait, it captures Carter not in the formal trappings of power, but with a gentle, approachable humanity. The stamp was designed by USPS art director Ethel Kessler.
“The Carter family and the Friends of Jimmy Carter are honored to be able to take part in revealing the design,” said Kim Carter Fuller, the organization's executive director. “Today’s reveal gives the world an opportunity to share his legacy with others on a daily basis.”
As a Forever stamp, its value will always be equal to the current price of a first-class, one-ounce mail item, ensuring that the image of the 39th president will continue to circulate for years to come.
