Former President Jimmy Carter shared a special friendship with Mattie Stepanek, a terminally ill boy and poet who asked the ...

As we look back at the life and legacy of the 39th President of The United States much will be said about the more than 30 ...

Jeni Stepanek, the mother of young poet and peacemaker Mattie Stepanek, knew former President Jimmy Carter as few did — as a ...

Jeni Stepanek’s son Mattie had forged a bond with Carter in 2001, days before he was supposed to die. Mattie had said one of ...

"If it hadn't been for Jimmy Carter, I think my son would have given up," Jeni Stepanek tells PEOPLE of her son, Mattie, who ...

Mattie Stepanek’s admiration for Jimmy Carter began at age six, setting off a bond that lasted until the boy's death at 13 in ...

"If it hadn't been for Jimmy Carter, I think my son would have given up," Jeni Stepanek tells PEOPLE of her son, Mattie, who died in 2004 at the age of 13 Elissa Rosen is a writer-reporter at PEOPLE.

Jeni Stepanek, the mother of young poet and peacemaker Mattie Stepanek, knew former President Jimmy Carter as few did — as a neighbor and friend. Carter died at the age of 100 on Sunday.

Countless lives all around the world were touched by former President Jimmy Carter, including young poet Mattie Stepanek. Mattie's mother, Jeni Stephanek, joined Alyse Eady to discuss the special ...