Jimmy Carter's Grandson Reveals How Family Is Staying Close and 'Expressing Love' amid Hospice Care (Exclusive)

Hugo Wentzel, the former president's 24-year-old grandson, tells PEOPLE that his family is "really oriented around [their] close, tight-knit circle right now" — and that President Carter continues to teach him life lessons

Jimmy Carter’s grandson is giving an update on the former president amid his hospice care.

Speaking with PEOPLE about his elimination from the ABC reality series Claim to Fame, Hugo Wentzel, 24, says he and his family are “staying close” after Carter, 98, was began hospice care at his Plains, Georgia, home in February.

Wentzel notes that people outside the family can’t visit the former president anymore due to strict COVID regulations, but Carter’s immediate family is “really oriented around [their] close, tight-knit circle right now.”

Related: Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Enjoy Grandchildren's Living Room Juggling Show: 'They Loved It'

Wentzel adds that his mother — President Carter and Rosalynn Carter’s only daughter, Amy — “spends a lot of time taking care of him.”

“I have had a great life with him,” Wentzel says of his grandfather, whom he affectionately calls “Papa.”

“He's been an amazing grandpa. He's an amazing person. I absolutely love him," Wentzel says. "Just from what he's done as a family man, I've had great experiences. Growing up, he's been a great influence, and at this point, we're just taking care of him, expressing love, as he gets older.”

Related: 'Claim to Fame' Eliminated Star Reveals They're Dating Another Contestant: 'It's Amazing' (Exclusive)

During his elimination on Claim to Fame on Monday night, Wentzel spoke about his grandfather's incredible legacy, a moment he says was “really emotional.” He tells PEOPLE that he prepared a speech beforehand so that he could appropriately pay tribute to him.

“I actually wrote down the speech in my journal I had because there were some key points I wanted to hit just about how much I appreciate him, how much I care about equality, and just how much I loved everyone on the show,” Wentzel says.

"A big part of the show was just finding all these different people, different interests, different life stories, different backgrounds, different personalities, and then by the end, I just felt like we were literally a family,” he continues.

“I feel like my grandpa did stand for something similar to that because when he was running, he was all about everyone being equal and just trying to love everyone as much as you can. Part of my goal during the speech was to represent that and just talk about how much I love every single person.”

Related: All About Jimmy Carter and Rosalynn Carter's Children and Grandchildren

Though Wentzel notes he’s had many great memories with his grandfather over the years, including one fond family trip to the Galapagos Islands when he was 13, he says that one of the biggest lessons he’s learned from President Carter was fairly recently.

“I had a really long talk with him, semi-recently, and the biggest takeaway was just something basic, but I do apply it in my life. He just said, ‘When you start something, just don't stop doing it until it's done,’" Wentzel recalls. "I feel like people say that a lot, but hearing him say that to me, especially [with] the stuff he's accomplished, I really took it to heart, and that's one of my principles for my life at this point.”

Related: Jimmy Carter's Choice to Utilize Hospice Care Is 'Intentional,' Expert Believes

Wentzel hopes he can carry on his grandfather’s legacy of “maintaining and promoting equality” in his everyday life going forward. “[His legacy is] helping people who are disadvantaged, showing love all the time, and working really hard, and I plan to do that in my life, too. I'm an engineer and I want to open my own business.”

He adds that he might even go into politics eventually. "That'd be in the distant future," he adds, "But we'll see what happens.”

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