Profile of the Day: Helen Keller

“There is no king who has not had a slave among his ancestors, and no slave who has not had a king among his.”

Today we remember Helen Keller, who was born on June 27, 1880 in Tuscumbia, Alabama.

Helen Keller / Library of Congress

Struck blind and deaf before the age of two, Keller had very limited means of communication. Her family was referred to Alexander Graham Bell, who recommended they travel to the Perkins Institute for the Blind in Boston, Massachusetts. The institute suggested she work with Anne Sullivan, one of their most recent graduates. Sullivan would remain her teacher and companion for the next 49 years.

Thanks to Sullivan’s dedication, Keller learned to communicate with the world around her. She became the first deaf-blind person to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree and worked for the rest of her life as a social activist for the disabled. Today, she is remembered as one of the greatest humanitarians in the world.

Have you found your connection to Helen Keller? Explore her family tree on Geni and share how you’re related to the inspirational figure.
 

View Helen Keller’s Geni Profile