Sunday, March 15, 2020
2:00 pm
Free and open to the public

The Bennington Historical Society presents
Anne Sullivan with Phyllis Chapman

Anne Sullivan couldn’t have had the odds stacked against her any higher. Born in poverty, orphaned and partially blind, she was sent to live in a gruesome poor house. After graduating from the Perkins School for the Blind in Boston, she took on a formidable task: educating the young deaf and blind Helen Keller in Alabama. That she succeeded was not a miracle but the result of taming an angry frustrated child and using innovative teaching methods that enabled Helen to learn and communicate. Helen, with Anne’s assistance, graduated from Radcliffe College and became an accomplished writer and humanitarian. Together she and Anne advocated for educational opportunities for people with disabilities.

Not only does Ms. Chapman present the life story of Ms. Sullivan, but involved the audience in the process.

Phyllis Chapman is the founder of Vintage Ladies Presentations which offers living history presentations of strong women who have made a difference.

All programs of the Historical Society are free and open to the public. The Bennington Historical Society is a volunteer-run program of Bennington Museum.