UPPER MACUNGIE TWP., Pa. — In 1979, Rachelle Carmenucci, then living near Pittsburgh, got a knock on the door of her home.
It was President Jimmy Carter and first lady Rosalynn Carter.
The Carters drank lemonade in the backyard, held her baby, and chatted with her husband and their friends.
Later, the president flew her to the White House, where they ate lamb with mint jelly while actor Henry Winkler, who played Fonzie on the ABC-TV sitcom "Happy Days," was in the building.
Carter, who was president 1977-81, died Dec. 29 at the age of 100 — making him the longest-lived president in American history. He was buried Jan. 9 in his hometown of Plains, Georgia.
The official mourning period for him continues: President Biden ordered U.S. flags to be flown at half-staff for 30 days at military posts and on federal buildings — through Jan. 28.
It's a time that causes Carmenucci, who now lives in the Lehigh Valley, to reflect when she met, interacted and spent time with Carter — when he was, perhaps, the most important and powerful man in the world.
But she remembers him as sweet and genuine.
'Little mini-summit'
Carter soon would announce his campaign for re-election. The U.S. economy was doing poorly,there was conflict happening in the Middle-East, and gas prices were going up.
Pennsylvania already was a battleground state, and both Carter and his presumed Republican challenger, Ronald Reagan, were courting the state's industrial towns for support from blue-collar workers.
Carmenucci, who was born in Pittsburgh and who moved to Fogelsville a year and a half ago to be closer to her daughter, was then a registered nurse, living in Carnegie, Allegheny County.
She said one of her neighbors, a union nurse, approached her with a proposition.
"So the union had contacted her, asking her if she knew of any blue-collar workers that might be willing to host somebody 'very, very famous,'" Carmenucci said.
"She didn't say who — but she sort of hinted that it could possibly be the president. So I'm, like, 'Sure.' I'm not gonna turn that down."
Carmenucci's then-husband was an iron worker at a steel mill, and they were asked to invite some friends who also fit the demographic to meet the president.
"We had invited five couples from the neighborhood to partake of this little mini-summit that we had," she said.
'Here comes the president'
After the Carmenuccis were vetted by the U.S. Secret Service, the day finally came — July 13, 1979.
"Secret Service were swarming," Carmenucci said. "They were all over. It was so cool. Because, you know, they're like, big! I was, like, 'Whoa.'"
There were dozens of black cars with flashing lights, and the entire neighborhood was basically shut down, she said.
"The limo was long," Carmenucci said. "Like, thank God it fit on our little street in the little town of Carnegie.
"And then, you know, here comes the president."
"They were the most sweetest loving couple — genuine. They were so genuine, and so real."Rachelle Carmenucci
Between bites of snacks and sips of lemonade, the Carters had a roundtable discussion about their concerns and hopes — mainly focused on the lives of the steel workers and their families.
"President Carter was asking all, you know, the men, really, because it wasn't the women so much, but was asking all the men, you know, their thoughts and to share their concerns," Carmenucci said.
"And I know everyone was concerned, like I said, because the economy had tanked, gas lines, inflation, people concerned because of their jobs, their welfare.
"How are they going to provide for their families?"
Carmenucci said that what she most remembers is how genuine and warm she found the Carters to be.
"They were the most sweetest, loving couple — and genuine," Carmenucci said.
"They were so genuine and so real. They weren't putting on any front, or any show. You just wanted to hug them."
The house was under construction at the time, and Carmenucci said the lawn chairs they had put out for the president were modest.
"They were just so respectful, and you could tell, they weren't snooty and didn't look down on us," she said. "They were just so real and accepting and genuine.
"I just thank and praise God you that we had this opportunity."
Media circus
The day after the presidential visit, local and national TV news stations were knocking at the family's door with their cameras, Carmenucci said.
In archival footage from KSBW-TV 8 Action News in Salinas, California, Carmenucci tells the story of the visit with whimsy — much the way she tells it now.
In the days after the Carter visit, Carmenucci said, she was flown to New York to appear as a guest on NBC-TV's "Today" show.
"After being on the 'Today' show, you can't believe the mail I got," Carmenucci said.
"The majority of the mail was wonderful, but I got some mail saying I should have worn something different, or that 'I looked so bad,' like my dress was too short. It was so funny."
Some of the mail was from people who suspected they were related to Carmenucci, and some of it was people in Pittsburgh expressing hometown pride.
"The majority were so kind."
To the White House
After the fanfare of the visit settled somewhat, Carmenucci said, she got a call from the White House.
She was invited, all expenses paid, to have lunch in the president and first lady's private quarters.
The other families who were at her Pittsburgh home when the Carters visited also were invited, but declined, she said.
One of the men in attendance, Carmenucci recalled, said it was because he couldn't find the gas for the drive — a jab at Carter's handling of OPEC's oil embargo that prompted gas lines and soaring price.
"They served us leg of lamb with mint jelly," Carmenucci said.
"Because, well, lamb, you gotta have it with mint jelly.
"But there we were, you know, in the private dining room. How precious is that? Yes, they were so real. It was real Southern hospitality." Carter was a native of Georgia.
During the Carmenuccis' trip to the White House, actor Henry Winkler was there to donate his "Happy Days" character Fonzie's leather jacket to the Smithsonian Institute.
"Like, Fonze? How fun is that?" Carmenucci said. She said she was able to briefly say hello to Winkler, but he was unable to join for lunch.
"He was busy or something," she said with a laugh.
Carmenucci said they had a Boston Cream pastry for dessert that was delicious. She said the White House staff gave her a takeout box with leftovers.
'He held our daughter'
With Carter's recent passing, Carmenucci, who now is retired, said she grieved as more than just a member of the public who saw Carter on television.
"I was sad," she said. "There was a sadness, because we entertained and hosted them, in our home. I mean — that's making me feel emotional. He held our daughter."
It's the same daughter who, all these years later, prompted Carmenucci to move to the Lehigh Valley so she could be closer to her.
Carmenucci actually had to stop to remember to which political party Carter belonged.
He was a Democrat.
"It didn't matter," she said. "It didn't matter if he was Democrat or Republican. He was the president of the United States, and I respected him."
