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After the butterfly release in the Rosalynn Smith Carter childhood garden Andrew Greer and grammy nominee Cindy Morgan performed a song they had co-wrote honoring Rosalynn Carter in the Plains community center.

Afterwards, Kim Fuller, Jimmy Carter’s niece, addressed those who were in attendance. She described seeing the former first lady at a family gathering earlier that day and spoke of the wonder in Rosalynn Carter’s voice that everyone was coming to butterfly day in her honor. She also talked about Rosalynn Carter’s influence on the former president, and how it shaped him and his career.

“She was always going to push him as much as she could. And she’s always been an influence on whatever he said and whatever he did because she always supported him.”

“She did it with a firm hand.”

Ms. Fuller talked about the effect of being a military wife on Rosalynn Carter.

“She had to learn sometimes to be on her own.”

Ms. Fuller also talked about the impact the former first lady had on her own life.

“Rosalynn’s taught me patience. She’s a very patient woman. Not all the time, but she’s still a very patient person.”

Laurence Cook addressed those gathered, describing his book covering the history of several influential presidential wives, including Mrs. Carter.

He talked about how she had testified before congress about mental health. He mentioned how she was a powerful force for the president’s campaign.

“Rosalynn overcame, what I call near pathologic shyness and fear of public speaking, to go out and campaign two different governor races and two presidential races.”

“She was the first wife of a major candidate to go out and really campaign for herself at the same time she was campaigning for her husband. She would go out and let people know what kind of first lady she was going to be.”

“When people went into that voting booth, at the 1976 elections, Rosalynn Carter’s name was not on the ballot, but it certainly was on the voter’s minds.”

He told how this attitude stayed with her while her husband was in office.

“She was the first to have an office in the East Wing.”

Afterward, Cindy Morgan talked briefly, describing Mrs. Carter as a “Steel Magnolia.” She also read a brief passage from her book Jubilee.

David Osbourne played several songs and talked about first meeting president Carter in Orlando Florida.

“I stood in line for three hours. It was three blocks long.”

He talked about driving to Plains afterward to play for the president.

“In the last thirty-five years, I’ve come here pretty much once a year as a tribute to President Carter.”

“In my opinion, he’s the greatest guy who ever served in the White House.”

In between songs, he talked about meeting Andrew Lloyd Weber in the East Wing of the White House when Laura Bush had asked him to play.

“He said, ‘Don’t play my music.’”

He expressed his distress as that covered most of his program. However, he was told Andrew Lloyd Weber was overruled.

“Mrs. Bush wants you to play it anyway. What happens in the White House, Mrs. Bush decides.”