Former President Jimmy Carter.Photo: Brian Ach/WireImage
Jimmy Carter’s grandson is giving an update on the former presidentamid his hospice care.
Speaking with PEOPLE about his eliminationfrom the ABC reality seriesClaim to Fame, Hugo Wentzel, 24, says he and his family are “staying close” after Carter, 98, wasbegan hospice care at his Plains, Georgia, home in February.
Wentzel notes that people outside the family can’t visit the former president anymore due to strict COVID regulations, but Carter’s immediate family is “really oriented around [their] close, tight-knit circle right now.”
Wentzel adds that his mother — President Carter andRosalynn Carter’s onlydaughter, Amy— “spends a lot of time taking care of him.”
“I have had a great life with him,” Wentzel says of his grandfather, whom he affectionately calls “Papa.”
“He’s been an amazing grandpa. He’s an amazing person. I absolutely love him," Wentzel says. “Just from what he’s done as a family man, I’ve had great experiences. Growing up, he’s been a great influence, and at this point, we’re just taking care of him, expressing love, as he gets older.”
Hugo Wentzel, daughter of Amy Carter and grandson of Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter.ABC/Gizelle Hernandez
ABC/Gizelle Hernandez
During his elimination onClaim to Fameon Monday night, Wentzel spoke about his grandfather’sincredible legacy, a moment he says was “really emotional.” He tells PEOPLE that he prepared a speech beforehand so that he could appropriately pay tribute to him.
“I actually wrote down the speech in my journal I had because there were some key points I wanted to hit just about how much I appreciate him, how much I care about equality, and just how much I loved everyone on the show,” Wentzel says.
Jimmy Carter talks with his grandson Hugo Wentzel at a picnic in Istanbul, Turkey, in 2009.Jeff Moore/The Elders via Getty
Jeff Moore/The Elders via Getty
Though Wentzel notes he’s had many great memories with his grandfather over the years, including one fond family trip to the Galapagos Islands when he was 13, he says that one of the biggest lessons he’s learned from President Carter was fairly recently.
“I had a really long talk with him, semi-recently, and the biggest takeaway was just something basic, but I do apply it in my life. He just said, ‘When you start something, just don’t stop doing it until it’s done,’” Wentzel recalls. “I feel like people say that a lot, but hearing him say that to me, especially [with] the stuff he’s accomplished, I really took it to heart, and that’s one of my principles for my life at this point.”
Wentzel hopes he can carry on his grandfather’s legacy of “maintaining and promoting equality” in his everyday life going forward. “[His legacy is] helping people who are disadvantaged, showing love all the time, and working really hard, and I plan to do that in my life, too. I’m an engineer and I want to open my own business.”
He adds that he might even go into politics eventually. “That’d be in the distant future,” he adds, “But we’ll see what happens.”
source: people.com
