Governor Lamont Issues Executive Order Honoring President Jimmy Carter, Calls for Statewide Minute of Silence on Thursday at 10AM

STATE OF CONNECTICUT
BY HIS EXCELLENCY
NED LAMONT

EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 25-1

WHEREAS, James Earl Carter, Jr. – known and beloved to all as Jimmy – served with great distinction as the 39th President of the United States from January 20, 1977 to January 20, 1981; and

WHEREAS, President Carter’s honorable tenure of service to his Nation first began in 1943, upon his hard-earned matriculation to the United States Naval Academy – it was during his enrollment there where he met and fell in love with his wife, Eleanor Rosalynn Carter, played sprint football for the Navy Midshipmen, and graduated in 1946 to become an Ensign in the U.S. Navy; and

WHEREAS, the time spent by President Carter in the U.S. Navy eventually led him to Connecticut – after two tours of duty at sea he would go on to volunteer for and become actively assigned to the submarine force, stationed at Naval Submarine Base New London in Groton, where he would continue training to become an officer and was promoted to the rank of lieutenant, leaving our state in 1953; and

WHEREAS, President Carter was instrumental in preserving Submarine Base New London in 2005 when the U.S. Navy recommended it be closed and its mission, personnel, and submarine force be reassigned to Naval Station Norfolk, Virginia, and his home state of Georgia’s Submarine Base Kings Bay; and

WHEREAS, President Carter’s career as an elected official began in 1971, when he was sworn in as the 76th governor of Georgia – during his four years in office, he championed the causes of anti-segregation, human rights, early childhood development programs, prison reform, and more; and

WHEREAS, after winning the 1976 presidential election, President Carter and his administration achieved enumerated goals both domestically and abroad – including the establishment on the federal level of the Department of Energy and the Department of Education, the deregulation of the airline and beer industries, the Camp David Accords between Egypt and Israel, improved Sino-American relations, and more; and

WHEREAS, President Carter used his post-presidency period to participate in international diplomatic efforts in Israel, Palestine, North Korea, South Africa, and Syria – and has notably maintained an active level of involvement volunteering for Habitat for Humanity, based in his home state of Georgia; and

WHEREAS, President Carter passed away on December 29, 2024, at the age of 100 years old – the longest-lived president in the history of the United States, leaving behind an enduring legacy of humanitarian and peacekeeping endeavors; and

WHEREAS, President Joseph R. Biden Jr. has declared January 9, 2025, a National Day of Mourning throughout the United States in honor of President Carter’s remarkable life and in tribute to his many accomplishments made in the spirit of making the world a more equitable place for all to live and thrive;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, NED LAMONT, Governor of the State of Connecticut, by virtue of the power and authority vested in me by the Connecticut Constitution and by the Statutes of the State of Connecticut, do hereby ORDER AND DIRECT:

1. January 9, 2025, shall be a Day of Remembrance throughout the State of Connecticut to honor the life and service of President James Earl Carter, Jr.
2. Connecticut state agencies and offices, public schools and higher education institutions, and municipal governments shall observe one minute of silence in memory of President Carter, commencing at 10:00 a.m. on January 9, 2025.
3. Residents of and visitors to Connecticut are asked to also observe one minute of silence at 10:00 a.m. on January 9, 2025, in memory of President Carter.

This Order shall take effect immediately.

Dated at Hartford, Connecticut, this 6th day of January, 2025.