Jimmy Carter, wife Rosalynn celebrate 75 years of marriage

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Amy Carter, left, rises her glass during a toast to her parents former President Jimmy Carter and former first lady Rosalynn Carter during a reception to celebrate their 75th wedding anniversary Saturday, July 10, 2021, in Plains, Ga.. (AP Photo/John Bazemore, Pool)

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FILE - In this Aug. 6, 2001, file photo former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, left, and his wife Rosalynn help build a house for the Jimmy Carter Work Project 2001, at Asan near Chonan city, south of Seoul, South Korea. Jimmy Carter and his wife Rosalynn celebrate their 75th anniversary this week on Thursday, July 7, 2021. (AP Photo/Yun Jai-hyoung, File)

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Former Sen. Sam Nunn, D-Ga., arrives for a reception to celebrate the 75th wedding anniversary of former President Jimmy Carter and former first lady Rosalynn Carter 75th wedding anniversary Saturday, July 10, 2021, in Plains, Ga.. (AP Photo/John Bazemore, Pool)

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Former President Jimmy Carter smiles as his wife former first lady Rosalynn Carter speaks during a reception to celebrate their 75th wedding anniversary Saturday, July 10, 2021, in Plains, Ga.. (AP Photo/John Bazemore, Pool)

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FILE - In this Oct. 9, 1981, file photo, Mrs. Jehan Sadat, widow of assassinated Egyptian President Anwar Sadat, is flanked by U.S. Presidents Jimmy Carter, left, and Gerald Ford, as they meet in her Giza Nile-side home. Jehan Sadat died in Cairo on Friday, July 9, 2021, at the age of 87, Egypt’s President’s office said. (AP Photo, File)

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Former President Jimmy Carter reacts as his wife Rosalynn Carter speaks during a reception to celebrate their 75th wedding anniversary Saturday, July 10, 2021, in Plains, Ga.. (AP Photo/John Bazemore, Pool)

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Former President Jimmy Carter sips champagne as his wife former first lady Rosalynn Carter speaks during a reception to celebrate their 75th wedding anniversary Saturday, July 10, 2021, in Plains, Ga.. (AP Photo/John Bazemore, Pool)

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Former President Jimmy Carter and his wife former first lady Rosalynn Carter sit together during a reception to celebrate their 75th wedding anniversary Saturday, July 10, 2021, in Plains, Ga.. (AP Photo/John Bazemore, Pool)

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Amy Carter arrives for a reception to celebrate the 75th wedding anniversary of her parents former President Jimmy Carter and former first lady Rosalynn Carter Saturday, July 10, 2021, in Plains, Ga.. (AP Photo/John Bazemore, Pool)

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House Speaker Nancy Pelosi arrives for a reception to celebrate the 75th wedding anniversary of former President Jimmy Carter and former first lady Rosalynn Carter Saturday, July 10, 2021, in Plains, Ga.. (AP Photo/John Bazemore, Pool)

PLAINS, Ga. (AP) — Former President Jimmy Carter on Saturday turned to his wife Rosalynn and thanked her for 75 years of marriage, telling her that she’s always been right for him.

“I want to express particular gratitude for being the right woman that I chose for my wife,” Carter said at a 75th wedding anniversary celebration in his hometown of Plains, Georgia. About 300 friends and family members attended the event at Plains High School, part of which was livestreamed.

Rosalynn Carter, sitting by his side, recounted how she didn’t care for dating young men while growing up and never thought she’d get married.

“I didn’t know how to talk to them, I didn’t want to go out with them,” she said. She added that she used to urge her mother to tell suiters calling for her on the phone that she wasn’t around.

“And then, along came Jimmy Carter and my life has been an adventure ever since,” she said.

In a recent interview, the 39th president told The Associated Press that the couple’s marriage is “a full partnership.”

The two met in Georgia when Jimmy Carter, at the time a young midshipman, was home from the U.S. Navy Academy. His younger sister set him up on a date with Rosalynn, who was a family friend who already had a crush on the future Georgia governor and U.S. president.

The two were married on July 7, 1946, in Plains, a town of fewer than 1,000 residents.

Their anniversary is the most recent milestone for the longest-married presidential couple in American history. Rosalynn Carter is 93. The former president, at 96, is the longest-lived of the 45 men who’ve served as chief executive.

Those who attended Saturday’s celebration included former U.S. President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, along with U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Country music stars Trisha Yearwood and Garth Brooks; and media businessman Ted Turner also attended, the Carter Center said in a statement.

Carter, wearing a dark suit jacket with a yellow flower on the chest, closed his brief remarks with six simple words to those gathered: “I love you all very much.”