In 2013, when thousands of New Jersey families were left devastated by Superstorm Sandy, former President Jimmy Carter helped people rebuild their homes in Union Beach. He was 80 years old.

The former president died on Sunday at his home in Plains, Georgia at the age of 100.

Carter came to New Jersey to support the work of Habitat for Humanity, an organization that he partnered with in his words, to “remove the stigma of charity by substituting it with a sense of partnership.”

The former president was previously in New Jersey for the opening of a Habitat location in Salem County in 1985, where Sue Ann Leighty is the organization’s executive director.

“He was here, spent the night locally, met with people. I have run into so many people that have told me that they were little children and they were there to meet the president. And it was a big deal for Salem County to have a president come.”

The partnership of the former president with Habitat for Humanity, which depends on the generosity of others to continue serving those in need, advanced Habitat’s efforts, Leighty said in an interview with NJ Spotlight News.

“We’re the twenty-third affiliate, but we’re the first in New Jersey … So to have a president show up, I believe really lends some credibility to the program and to what we’re all about; and not just giving away homes like some people think. We’re putting a roof over their head. We’re giving them hope,” Leighty said.

As for Carter’s legacy, Leighty says it’s one of Christian faith and a commitment to service for others.

“His life was a life of service. … He had come from humble beginnings, he didn’t mind sleeping in a church on a cot. He was just a real down-to-earth guy, and when we met with him in Plains, Georgia, during his Bible study, he couldn’t have been more warm and welcoming and appreciative of our work for Habitat… I believe that he set a Christian example by living it, working it, doing it every day,” said Leighty.