Jimmy Carter, the 39th U.S. President, will be honored Thursday with the pageantry of a state funeral in the nation’s capital, followed by a second service and burial in his tiny Georgia hometown that launched a Depression-era farm boy to the world stage.

Current President Joe Biden, who was a senator when Carter ran for president in 1976, offered a eulogy Thursday at the Washington National Cathedral. Carter's casket will be flown to Georgia for a private family service after Thursday's public event.

The nation pauses to honor Jimmy Carter for his service as a naval officer, governor and president, and his four decades of humanitarian work after leaving the White House.