We all know the name Helen Adams Keller, but who was Anne Mansfield Sullivan. Anne Sullivan was born on April 14, 1866, in Feeding Hills, Massachusetts. Mrs. Sullivan was gifted with the talent to teach. Demonstration of her incredible skills as a teacher was with the work she did with Helen Keller. At the age of 20, Sullivan was maturated beyond her years.
She had a very challenging up bring, at the age of five, she had contracted an eye disease called Trachoma, which severely damaged her sight. She lost her mother at the age of eight. The next few years she would live with her abusive father. Eventually, he would abandon the family to a poor house called Tewksbury Almshouse.
Sullivan learned about schools for the blind while at the Tewksbury Almshouse. One day a group of special commission visited the home, Sullivan followed them around most of the day. At one point of the day she got the nerve worked up to talk to the members of the commission about her going to a particular school.
In 1880, Sullivan was able to attend the Perkins School for the Blind. Sullivan meant significant challenges while at Perkins, but never gave up. One of Sullivan challenges was humiliation as she did not have the social graces and was at odds with her peers. Sullivan had a quick temper and liked to challenge the rules, which got her into trouble with her teachers. She was, however, tremendously bright, and she soon advanced academically.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Maryann
Student Author - Spring 2017
Maryann is a designer, front-end developer and family gal. I like to doodle over fonts and pour through code. Designing web interfaces has to be one of the most challenging and rewarding careers, next to teaching. Requiring constant upgrading of knowledge, meeting demanding deadlines and finding solutions to criticism. And that’s why I love it. In my spare time, I spend as much time with my family Geocaching and playing Pokemon Go. I have an incredibly family and patient husband, James and three wonderful children. Chances are, you’ll find me either in front of a computer screen, at school, or with my family.
