About Helen Keller
En FrançaisWe invite you to read more about Helen Keller, her life and legacy, and about our annual Spirit of Helen Keller Gala by clicking on the links below.
The name of Helen Keller is known around the world as a symbol of courage in the face of overwhelming odds, yet she was much more than a symbol. She was a woman of luminous intelligence, high ambition and great accomplishment who devoted her life to helping others. During her lifetime, Helen Keller was consistently ranked near the top of "most admired" lists. She died in 1968, leaving a legacy that Helen Keller International is proud to carry on in her name and memory.
Founded by Helen Keller in 1915, Helen Keller International is one of the world’s premier international not-for-profit organizations dedicated to preventing blindness and reducing malnutrition. Working worldwide, we combat the root causes and extended consequences of blindness and malnutrition by establishing affordable and sustainable programs that are based on scientific evidence, original research and an unwavering determination to succeed against challenges that can too often be seen as insurmountable.
The results of our efforts are dramatic and wide-ranging. They perpetuate the indomitable spirit of Helen Keller, whose words continue to frame our values, and to guide us today:
“The welfare of each is bound up in the welfare of all.”
The Spirit of Helen Keller Gala
We hosted our fourth annual Spirit of Helen Keller Gala in May, 2009 in New York, raising over $700,000 to benefit our continuing work to prevent blindness and reduce malnutrition around the world. Nearly 300 guests joined us to celebrate our work and to recognize three outstanding individuals and institutions that have lent their voice and might to the fight against needless blindness and malnutrition:
- The 2009 Spirit of Helen Keller Award was presented to David Green, a MacArthur Fellow, an Ashoka Fellow, and a leading social entrepreneur, for his quest to make health care products and services available, accessible and affordable to all, particularly the poorest.
- The 2009 Helen Keller Humanitarian Award was presented to Johnson & Johnson, in recognition of their sustained humanitarian efforts around the world and their outstanding leadership in improving global health, notably through their Children Without Worms initiative. Brian D. Perkins, Corporate Vice President, Corporate Affairs, accepted the Award on behalf of J&J.
- The 2009 Helen Keller Legacy Award, went to Christie’s Inc. in recognition of its generosity and support of HKI for over a decade. Christopher Burge, Honorary Chairman of Christie’s Inc., and a former HKI board trustee, accepted on behalf of the auction house.
Click here to view selected speeches delivered at the 2009 Spirit of Helen Keller Gala.
Click here to view all of the Spirit of Helen Keller Award, The Helen Keller Humanitarian Award, The Helen Keller Legacy Award, and The Helen Keller Visionary Award recipients, from 1960 through 2009.
