In Carter's hometown hamlet, a long anticipated goodbye begins

A visitor lights candles during a vigil held at Maranatha Baptist Church, where former President Jimmy Carter used to worship, in Plains, Georgia, on December 30, 2024. [AFP]

In Jimmy Carter's tiny hometown of Plains, Georgia on Monday, the former US president's death was only beginning to sink in, even if friends and neighbors have been bracing for it since he went into hospice care nearly two years ago.

Those in the rural hamlet -- centered around a few old storefronts in the shadow of several massive agricultural silos and buildings -- said the centenarian's death was sad, but in the same breath they recounted fond memories of time spent with the former US leader and global humanitarian.