Marshall Ramsey was born and raised in Georgia and shared how the former president impacted him.
ATLANTA — Across the country, people are recalling how former President Jimmy Carter impacted others. The 100-year-old died Dec. 29, 2024, at his home in Plains, The Carter Center announced.
Carter’s influence stretches far and wide. Marshall Ramsey was born and raised in Georgia and shared how the former president impacted him.
“He was governor of the state of Georgia and really influenced me to end up becoming an editorial cartoonist,” Ramsey said.
He said it was exciting for him as a kid to see Carter run for president. Ramsey said at 8 years old, he told his dad he wanted to be an editorial cartoonist.
“Which was the weirdest thing an 8-year-old could possibly say to his dad,” he said, laughing.
Ramsey recalled practicing drawing Carter at that young age, crediting drawings of Carter he saw in a newspaper for sparking his interest in the job and in politics.
“My very first cartoon I drew in high school got me sent to the principal’s office,” Ramsey said with a smile.
However, Ramsey ended up as a janitor at a Marietta High School. The job paid off though — it’s how he ended up meeting his wife. He eventually got a cartoonist job and is now Editor-At-Large and editorial cartoonist for Mississippi Today.
“I’ve been very fortunate to have some incredible new stories to cover over the years. 9/11, the time when we were all in shock, was probably some of the best work that I did. I was a Pulitzer finalist that year for that work,” Ramsey said, recalling some of his proudest works.
“But really honestly, the obituary cartoons that I do when somebody passes away usually end up making a huge difference and meaning a lot to people. For instance, the Barbara Bush cartoon I did a few years ago when she passed away ended up going super viral and ended up making a huge difference, not only to the Bush family, but also to people who’d lost children. So it means a lot to me that the Jimmy Carter cartoon now has also gone viral, and it’s kind of neat seeing some of the response I’m getting,” he said.
Ramsey was visiting Woodstock when he heard about Rosalynn Carter’s death in 2023.
“And so, I ended up doing the cartoon of her from here, as well,” noting he was also in Woodstock when he learned about the former President’s death. Pres. Carter is a person Ramsey has drawn throughout his life.
“I drew Carter cartoons when I was eight, but also did it all throughout the years. It was so weird to draw him as he’s aged and changed, because I always will remember him the way I first started drawing him when I was really young,” he said.
When he learned about the former president’s death on Sunday, he knew exactly what to draw: a reunion of the Carters.
“It was a love story for the ages,” he said of the Carters and their relationship.
Ramsey said the former president can and will be remembered for so many things — but their relationship is what stood out to him.
“He’s had an amazing life, every aspect of his life has been just for the record books,” Ramsey said. “But his love for his wife to me, and the fact that you knew how much he missed her after all that time, that year apart. I wanted to make sure that I had them reuniting, and that’s immediately what I drew.”
Marshall said it’s touching to see the impact his cartoons make on people.
“It’s just a reminder that no matter what we do, what you do, we’re all artists. We all are given a blank canvas every single morning that we have the ability to create a piece of art in our lives, whether it’s if you sell cars or sell homes or if you work in a factory, you can create something that can make a difference in someone’s life,” Ramsey said.
Just as President Carter created for him.
See more of Ramsey’s cartoons below.
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