John Gnann, a photojournalist for FOX 4, grew up in Plains, Georgia, next door to Jimmy Carter. He took a seat and began telling tales about his neighbor, “Mr. Jimmy.”
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Former president Jimmy Carter died on Sunday.
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FOX 4 photojournalist John Gnann grew up next door to the Carters in Plains, Georgia.
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It was Gnann’s father that first introduced the Carters to Habitat for Humanity.
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Former president Jimmy Carter died on Sunday.
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FOX 4 photojournalist John Gnann grew up next door to the Carters in Plains, Georgia.
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It was Gnann’s father that first introduced the Carters to Habitat for Humanity.
DallasPeople from all over the world are paying their respects to former President Jimmy Carter for his humanitarian work, political career, and Nobel Prize.
John Gnann, a photojournalist for FOX 4, knew Carter as a neighbor, something that very few people ever do.
READ MORE: Jimmy Carter passes away at the age of 100 as the 39th president of the United States
Growing Up with the Carters
Gnann, who grew up in Plains, Georgia, next door to Carter, quickly became friends with Amy, the former president’s daughter.
“It was my brother, myself, and Amy. We were the musketeers, the Three Stooges. “That town was run by us,” recalls Gnann.
According to Gnann, “Mr. Jimmy,” as he called him, taught Sunday school at a Plains church and was a typical, everyday father.
The three also operated a profitable lemonade stand while the media gathered outside the Carter residence and Carter was searching for a running partner to accompany him on the campaign trail.
Gnann recalls losing a neighbor after Carter was elected president.
“When you re a kid you think that s just normal, and you re really focused on how it affects you and how it affected me was my best friend is moving away,” he said.
Throughout Jimmy Carter’s four years in office, the two families stayed close.
Gnann even stayed at the White House overnight.
“It was truly evidence that any kid that s born in this country could someday become president,” he stated.
He recalls that Carter’s knowledge was limitless and that he was always prepared with a clever remark.
“In addition to being amazing at his knowledge and understanding of the world, he was also brilliant at making others feel recognized and noticed. Simply amazing, a star,” Gnann recalled.
The Carters were first exposed to Habitat for Humanity by Gnann’s father.
Jimmy Carter, then 90, helped volunteers construct a house in Oak Cliff in 2014.
“What made them extraordinary was the hard work, the determination and the drive,” said Gnann.
John Gnann, a photojournalist for FOX 4, grew up in Plains, Georgia, close door to the Carter family.
Gnann is confident that others will be motivated by this legacy.
“If you worked hard and surround yourself with people that have similar goals, you can achieve the greatest thing,” he stated.
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John Gnann, a photojournalist for FOX 4, was interviewed for this article.
John Gnann, a photojournalist for FOX 4, was interviewed for this article.
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