PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — It was May 1978. Jimmy Carter was about halfway through his term as President of the United States when he wanted to show he was not a royal president, as former President Richard Nixon had been painted.
So Carter, 53 at the time, came to Portland. But rather than staying in a fancy hotel, he stayed with an ordinary couple — Janet and Paul Olson — at their house.
“Their house was turned into, you know, the White House for the night with connections to the White House phones. And he famously read the kids bedtime stories, had breakfast with them the next morning, wrote one of their daughters an excuse note, ‘Please excuse so-and-so from school today, you know, signed Jimmy Carter,’” Oregon Historical Society Executive Director Kerry Tymchuk told KOIN 6 News. “A man of the people — that’s how he saw himself.”
Photos: Jimmy Carter, from the White House to building houses
While that is a great story, Tymchuk believes Jimmy Carter will be remembered for a lot more.