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Jimmy Carter announces grandson's death at Sunday sermon

Carter made the announcement during his regular Sunday school lecture.
Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter in 2012. (Photo by Amr Dalsh/Reuters)
Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter in 2012.

Jimmy Carter's grandson has died, the former president said Sunday.

Carter, 91, made the announcement during his regular Sunday school lecture in Plains, Ga., although he apologized for being late — the first time ever — and described how only a few hours before, relatives tried unsuccessfully to revive his grandson, Jeremy, with CPR.

"When he got ready to eat supper he told his mother that he thought he would lie down awhile," Carter said. "His heart quit beating."

The Atlanta-Journal Constitution reported that Jeremy was 28. It is unclear what caused his death.

The announcement comes just two weeks after Carter revealed that his own battle with brain cancer was successful. He made that announcement at the same Maranatha Baptist Church, also on a Sunday morning.

Carter described Jeremy as "a very special child" who was preparing to transfer to a university to be closer to family. He recalled a long-ago family ski trip to the Saudi Arabian ambassador's mansion in Colorado when, out of the blue, Jeremy asked him about dying.

"Papa are you going to die someday?" Carter recalled him saying. "And I was really happy that my grandchild was concerned about me."

"I finally said, 'Well Jeremy, everybody's going to die someday,'" Carter recalled.

To which Jeremy responded, "When you die, can we still come to [this] place?" 

This story originally appeared on NBCNews.com