Former VP Walter Mondale left Jimmy Carter heartfelt eulogy

Ted Mondale describes Jimmy Carter's MN connection

As the world reflects on former president Jimmy Carter’s legacy after he passed away over the weekend at 100 years old, FOX 9’s Soyoung Kim details a special bond solidified when he chose Minnesotan Walter Mondale as his running mate.

ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - Walter Mondale had written a eulogy to the man who made him Vice President.

The world is reflecting on former President Jimmy Carter’s legacy after he passed away on Sunday, Dec. 29, at 100 years old.

Mondale’s son to deliver remarks

Minnesota ties: The 39th U.S. President’s special bond with Minnesota was solidified when he chose a Minnesotan, Walter Mondale, as his running mate.

Ted Mondale describes the eulogy his father, Walter Mondale, had left that gives the world a glimpse into who former President Carter was as a president, teammate and friend.

"His comments are a reflection of someone who was side-by-side with him for four years and friends later," said Ted Mondale, Walter Mondale’s son. "The comments he drafted were in 2015, when Carter first had brain cancer at age 90."

Walter passed away in 2021. Since then, the plan has been for Ted to share the remarks when the time came.

"It’s an incredible honor," said Ted. "He was always incredibly kind to us kids. Carter always treated my father and my mother with great respect."

"They had a very good and strong relationship. They talked on the phone, and it really was a genuine, close, long relationship they had," said Ted about the bond his father had with Carter. "I must say it’s pretty rare for somebody of his stature and his job and how busy and stressed he had to be to take the time to care about other people. I think that reflects on the kind of person that he is."

Ted said his family knew Carter as a modest man of character and faith, whether he was in the Oval Office or with friends and family, that is truly who he was.

"He was a humble man," said Ted. "They said, we told the truth, we obeyed the law, and we kept the peace."

Inspiring generations

Lasting impact: Carter inspired generations of Minnesotans.

So much so, in the early 1980s, a 9-year-old girl in Belle Plaine decided to write him a letter.

"Dear Mr. President, I’m so sorry you lost. I really enjoyed you as president and I love peanuts, too," said Christine Skluzacek, who recalled what she wrote in the letter.

She received a letter back. Fast-forward to 2015; Skluzacek met Carter at Sunday school in Georgia.

"It was one of the highlights of my life," said Skluzacek. "I really got tears in my eyes. He really was a wonderful person and a wonderful man. The world is a better place because of him."