On December 28, the Randell Research Center was honored by a visit by the family of former President James Earl Carter and his wife Rosalynn, along with all four of their children and all but one of their eleven grandchildren.
During their holiday vacation in Cape Coral, the Carter family spent a full day touring Pine Island Sound, beginning with the Pineland archaeological site, followed by a cruise to nearby Cabbage Key, Useppa Island, and Cayo Costa State Park. Accompanied by RRC Advisory Board member Randy Wayne White, as well as staff members Jennifer Jennings and Craig Timbes and volunteer Terry Pierce, I led the group of 24 family members and their security detail around the new Calusa Heritage Trail for about an hour in the unusually brisk morning air.
As gauged by the positive reaction of our guests, the tour was a success, and marks a milestone in the visitorship of the RRC – a visit by a former United States president and Nobel Peace Prize winner, along with almost his entire family.
This article was taken from the Friends of the Randell Research Center Newsletter Vol 3, No. 4. December 2004.