Former President Jimmy Carter’s grandson says “it’s clear we’re in the final chapter” as his grandfather, the oldest lived president in U.S. history, continues hospice care and his grandmother, Rosalynn Carter, battles dementia.

Life at the Carter’s home in Plains is “quiet and calm” these days, their grandson, Josh says.

“My grandparents have always been the entertainers,” Josh Carter told People magazine. Visits were once filled with exciting stories and souvenirs from their world travels, he said, “but now we’re kind of the ones having to entertain. It’s different, it’s just a different era.”

The Carter Center announced in February that Jimmy, 98, would stop medical intervention and enter hospice care “to spend his remaining time at home with his family.” Three months later, the Carters revealed that Rosalynn, who turned 96 last week, has dementia.

Josh Carter, 39, noted to People that Jimmy and Rosalynn remain present and aware of what’s going on around them.

“He’s still fully Jimmy Carter,” Josh told People. “He’s just tired. I mean he’s almost 99 years old, but he fully understands (how many well wishes he’s received) and has felt the love.”

Rosalynn understands that she has dementia, Josh said. She signed off on the news release that revealed her diagnosis in May. “She still knows who we are, for the most part — that we are family,” he says, noting that a good night’s sleep improves her symptoms.

Josh Carter said he expects his grandfather will be the first to pass. “He’s in hospice care and she’s not, and it’s just math.”

Meanwhile, they remain together in the same small town where they were born, grew up and raised a family before Jimmy Carter launched his political career. The former governor of Georgia won the presidency in 1976.

It’s “gotta be hard” for Jimmy to see his wife of 77 years losing some of her memories, Josh said. “But, on the other hand, they’ve experienced everything that you can together. I think the beautiful thing is that they are still together.”

And they’re not just under the same roof. “They are still holding hands … it’s just amazing.”

Jimmy Carter, a Democrat, is the longest-lived president. His successor, Republican Ronald Reagan, died in 2004, at age 93. Reagan’s Republican successor, George HW Bush, died in 2018, aged 94.

Carter’s post-presidency is widely held to be the most successful of any U.S. president, The Guardian reported. He conducted diplomatic missions and championed charitable work. In 2002, he was awarded the Nobel peace prize, “for his decades of untiring effort to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights, and to promote economic and social development.”

Together they are the longest married first couple in history. The Carters’ marked their 77th wedding anniversary in July.

Rosalynn Carter turned 96 last week and is the second-oldest presidential spouse in U.S. history. Bess Truman died at 97 in 1982, the year after the Carters left the White House.