The Alvin Sun (Alvin, Tex.), Vol. 111, No. 47, Ed. 1 Monday, June 17, 2002 Page: 16 of 24
This newspaper is part of the collection entitled: Brazoria County Area Newspapers and was provided to The Portal to Texas History by the Alvin Community College.
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by CHERYL SLOAN WRAY
WHERE
Miracles
Happen
Visitors to Helen Kellers childhood home. Ivy Green, come away with a greater appreciation of h
plishments.
hopeless, as did her parents. But that day at the water Cheryl Sloan Wray is a writer based in Hueytown. Ala.
Page 8 • American Profile
H
HometoW
1
S pot.
I
isolation from the rest of the family, a carriage house,
landscaped grounds, and an outdoor theater. William
Gibson’s world-famous play, The Miracle Worker, is
performed by local actors there each Saturday and
Sunday evening throughout late June and July.
which supports laboratory
and clinical research to
advance vision and hear-
ing worldwide and holds
programs of public edu-
cation on Helen Keller’s
legacy. She also works
with the American Foun-
dation for the Blind.
Johnson says she often
walks the grounds of Ivy
Green and visualizes how
life must have been for
Keller and her sister—
Johnson’s great-great-
grandmother, Mildred.
“You can just imagine
Helen and Mildred play-
ing in these big trees,
much like sisters would
do today," she says. “Any-
one who has read Helen’s
biography or other books
about her can do the same
living history.
"Ivy Green is not just an old house,” Johnson says.
“You can actually come here and see the water pump.
There aren’t many historical sites where you can see
history so vividly."
Johnson, a lifelong resident of Tuscumbia, serves
as the vice president of the Helen Keller Foundation,
thing. They can see the stories come to life here at
Ivy Green."
Before Annie Sullivan came to teach Keller, the
child’s life was out of control. She felt helpless and
The modest white house seems
typical of many found throughout the South, with
its inviting front porch, beautiful interior, and
lovely grounds. But those physical attributes hint
nothing at the miracle that took place here more
than a century ago.
Walk around to the back lawn, though, and there
sits the evidence—the black water pump where blind
and deaf Helen Keller first understood the concept
of language in 1887. It was I
here that Kellersteacher. m
An s ilivan .t.t.s-'w m
word w A II R into rhe E
woaroidzit ' han : w hile m
owI wate r trom rhe pump m
tlowed onver her other hand ms
l ■ . 1 . • ■ ! and m
h 1 1‘u wr‘n m
h : k eridaadu 1.N he had m
learned SO words •
2
well enough to attend preparatory school.
“This young girl from Tuscumbia not only learned
how to read, using her hands, but she went on to
learn speech, attend school, and eventually graduate
from Radcliffe College," says Sue Pilkilton, Ivy
Green director.
Keller embarked on a career that educated and
inspired millions. She lectured in more than 25 coun-
tries on five continents, wrote five books, and brought
new courage to blind and sighted people alike. (Visit
www.helenhelUrfoundation.org for more information.)
Johnson has devoted her life to carrying on her
ancestor’s legacy by educating children across Alabama
about disability issues. Part of that education comes
from the annual Helen Keller Festival—held each
year on the last weekend in June—where kids can
learn Braille and sign language. Highlights of the
festival include a juried arts and crafts show, parade,
athletic events, and street concerts by national and
local musicians.
Residents of Tuscumbia, an inviting and intimate
town in northwest Alabama, are proud of its desig-
nation as home of America’s “First Lady of Courage. "
Helen Keller’s presence, in fact, pervades the town.
“Tuscumbia is one of those small towns that
thrives on its past, but is not stuck in the post,”
Johnson says. “We are proud of Helen Keller and
what she means to our town. We also, though, con-
tinue to thrive and grow."
Pilkilton says the town and the many Helen Keller
sites at Ivy Green continue to draw visitors from
around the world. Those visitors, she says, leave the
town with a better sense of who Keller was and are
inspired by her accomplishments. A
For Keller Johnson, Helen Keller’s great-great- pump indeed changed her life. In six months, Keller
niece, Ivy Green’s appeal comes from that sense of knew 625 words; by the time she was 16, she spoke
;• i - ’ !i - ma
the historical features found •
at Ivy Green, Helen Keller’s I
birthplace in Tuscumbia, I
Ala. (pop. 7,856). The home I
includes a museum filled with I
Keller documents and arti- E
facts (including her complete I
■ ...... meeee5
original furnishings and pho- I
tage where Sullivan and ,
° Keller Johnson at the miraculous black water pumps
Keller lived for two weeks in
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Schwind, Jim & Holton, Kathleen. The Alvin Sun (Alvin, Tex.), Vol. 111, No. 47, Ed. 1 Monday, June 17, 2002, newspaper, June 17, 2002; Alvin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1602836/m1/16/?q=%22~1~1~1%22~1: accessed July 16, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Alvin Community College.