Warmth of Enlightenment, Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan Statue

Photo credit - courtesy of the sculptor Craigger Browne

“Warmth of Enlightenment” is a white marble statue of Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan that stands in the garden of Ivy Green, the birthplace and childhood home of Heller Keller, which nowadays is a museum dedicated to her life story and achievements.

Keller (1880-1968) was a regular toddler living with her family in their homestead, Ivy Green; at 19 months of age, an illness left her deaf and blind, bringing uncertainty to her future. She lived in the darkness, able only to communicate with her family in basic terms.

At 7, following her mother’s request, the Perkins Institute for the Blind sent her to one of its teachers, 20-year-old Anne Sullivan. A month after her arrival, the breakthrough happened when Sullivan taught Keller to communicate and changed her life.

With Sullivan by her side, Keller continued acquiring formal education and later graduated from Radcliffe College with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1904, the first deaf-blind person. Keller became a world-famous author and lecturer. She traveled the world advocating for better lives for people with disabilities, promoting equal rights for people with disabilities, and inspiring everyone with her life story. She was also a suffragist, pacifist, socialist, birth control supporter, and civil rights activist.

In 1925, Keller addressed the Lions at the Lions Clubs International Convention, asking them to dedicate their work to help prevent blindness and serve the light for the blinds. Since then, Lions worldwide have been committed to Keller’s request, assisting hundreds of millions with vision-related work.

In 2012, the Tuscumbia Lions Club decided to celebrate and commemorate its 100th anniversary with a statue of Keller and Sullivan. With the help of other Lions Clubs and public fundraisers, they commissioned the Sylacauga sculptor Craigger Browne to design and sculpt it. Browne used a 24,000 pounds block of Sylacauga marble and worked tirelessly on the project for more than two years.
On September 9th, 2017, it was dedicated on the grounds of Ivy Green in the presence of Lions Clubs members from all over the country.

Most of Keller’s statues honor her legacy, inspiration, and activism work; however, this statue also pays tribute to her teacher, Anne Sullivan; without her, Keller would have probably never been able to find the light out of the darkness and into greatness.

The statue, made from Alabama marble, depicts the magical moment that changed Keller’s life when Sullivan spelled the word water in 7-year-old Keller’s palm while the other palm felt the running water. At this moment, Keller realized the relationship between the written word water and the concept of water, and her options for communicating with the world opened up and changed the course of her life.

There are other statues of Keller commissioned by the Lions Clubs; one stands in Canada, and another in Japan.

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Ivy Green 300 North Commons Street West Tuscumbia, AL 35674

 

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Ivy Green Helen Keller Birthplace WWP
Museum

Ivy Green, Helen Keller Birthplace

Tuscumbia, AL, USA

This historic house was the birthplace and childhood home of Heller Keller, a deaf-blind woman who became an author and an international public speaker, advocating for equal rights for people with disabilities and becoming a symbol of overcoming challenges to do great things. Heller Keller (1880-1968) was a healthy child, the oldest of five children who lived in a homestead, Ivy Green. She became deaf and blind at 19 months due to an illness. Keller learned to communicate with close people with 60 home signs; her mother, seeking ways to promote Keller, reached out to the school director of the Perkins Institute for the Blind, and he sent them one of the teachers, the 20-year-old Anne Sullivan. On March 5th, 1887, Sullivan came to Ivy Green to teach Keller ways to communicate; it was the beginning of a relationship that lasted for 50 years, at first as her governess and later as a companion. A month after her arrival, Sullivan was spelling the word water on the palm of Keller’s hand while running cold water over her other hand, symbolizing the concept of water. At that moment, Keller understood the mystery of language and learned to communicate. A year later, she started her formal education in several schools for the blind and deaf. In 1904, at 24, Keller graduated from Radcliffe, becoming the first deaf-blind person to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree. She traveled the world giving lectures, promoting equal rights for disabled people, and inspiring everyone with her story. Keller’s grandparents built Ivy Green in 1820; the simple structure originally served as a plantation office. Later, it became the home of Keller’s parents, Arthur Henley Keller and Catherine (Kate) Everett Keller. In 1954 the historic house became a museum commemorating the legacy and heritage of Hellen Keller. 85% of the items displayed on the house belonged to the Kellers. Also on view is a replica of the statue of Keller in the National Statuary Hall collection in the US Capitol, representing Alabama. Outside stands the historic water pump, where seven-year-old Keller understood the word, Water, a moment that opened the door to communication and took Keller out of her silent and dark surroundings into a new world. The museum hosts special events, including the annual Helen Keller Festival in the last week of June, celebrating her birthday and the annual Helen Keller Day, and the outdoor performance, the Miracle Worker, a play about Keller and Sullivan, presented during the summer time. This post is also available in: Español Read more...
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Rosa Parks Statue is standing in downtown Montgomery, AL, since it was unveiled on Dec 1st, 2019, 64 years after the day Parks got arrested for refusing to give up her seat to a white man on a city bus. This arrest led to the Montgomery Bus Boycott that challenged segregation on public buses. The bronze statue is located near the bus stop Parks used to board the bus. The Alabama State Capitol can be seen at the background of the statue, and a few minutes’ walk from the statue is the Rosa Parks Museum. Next to the statue stand four granite markers for the four women who were the plaintiffs in the Browder v. Gayle case – Aurelia Browder, Claudette Colvin, Susie McDonald, and Mary Louise Smith – which led to the cancellation of segregation on public buses. Smith participated in the unveiling ceremony. The statue was created by Montgomery County artist Clydetta Fulmer, who also sculptured the statue of General Richard Montgomery standing in front of Montgomery City Hall, and Helen Keller Statue located in Alabama Public Library Service. Fulmer created the statue from photographs of Parks. Among the 400 people and activists who attended the unveiling ceremony was the attorney Fred Gray, who defended Rosa Parks at the Browder v. Gayle case, as well as many civil rights activists who fought segregation. This post is also available in: Español Read more...
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