Helen Keller and Polly Thomson with amputees in wheelchairs at McCloskey General Hospital, Temple, Texas, 1944
On Veterans Day, the American Foundation for the Blind honors all those who have fought in America's wars.
Helen Keller was, and remains, a source of inspiration and solace for so many. During her lifetime thousands of veterans were inspired by her courage. We are particularly proud of the role Helen Keller played as a leading advocate for the men injured and maimed during World War I, World War II and the Korean War. Between 1944 and 1946 alone, Keller visited over 90 military hospitals. What she saw motivated her to become a powerful advocate for wounded servicemen. She successfully lobbied state and federal agencies demanding that rehabilitation centers be created and accommodations implemented for those who fought on behalf of the military.
On Veterans Day we are proud to share two beautiful letters, newly digitized, that shed light on the servicemen who fought for the United States. In the first letter a severely injured veteran thanks Helen for her enduring optimism. Helen's reply is as moving as the letter she received.
We salute all those who fought on behalf of this nation, and we are sure that forty-seven years after her death, Helen Keller would do so too.
Letter from Hoyt Hombrick to Helen Keller, 1946
Rt 2
Horton, Ala.
April 22, 1946Dear Miss Keller,
About 25 months ago my spine was severed at mid-back on the Anzio Beach-head.
I have just finished reading your book, "The Story of My Life." It was so much inspiration to me that I wanted to write and tell you so.
Your zest for life in your handicapped condition is a challenge to me as well as the remarkable accomplishments. Indeed, you have overcome your handicaps and received more from life than many who were not so handicapped.
My life has been enriched from reading of how much you appreciated the beauties of nature and loved all that is good.
Also I would like to say that I think Miss Sullivan had a great part in helping you to attain so much.
Sincerely yours,
Hoyt Hombrick
Draft of letter from Helen Keller to Hoyt Hombrick
Dear xxxxx... Honbrick,
Your letter was forwarded to me here in Oakland, one of the many cities where I have been visiting Government hospitals. The message warms me just as if we had met, and you had clasped my hand. Most humbly and tenderly I think of your dearness in encouraging me when I feel that a far heavier handicap has been laid upon you, and how bravely you are turning your thoughts to books and the soothing harmonies of nature.
Since you so touchingly mention my story, I feel wonderfully rewarded for having written it. If it contains even one comforting thought for you, I am ready for any effort to sow seeds that may sweeten affliction’s [sic.] with blossoms of light. It is an incalculable debt we owe you and all the men who who [sic.] through heroic sacrifice fashioned each rung of agony into a ladder on which humanity may ascend to world freedom and xxxxxx peace. We cannot pay even a small part of it, except with our remembering love, and by keeping faith with you in a ceaseless struggle xxxxxx incarnate in ourselves everywhere the principles and practices of democracy.
Sympathy gives me eyes for the weariness that besets you, but I am sure you will never surrender. Whatever you can gather of beauty or inspiration or accomplishment will release a quickening ray for your life-horizon and strengthen your will to wring compensations from fettering circumstances.
Embracing you in spirit, and grateful for a letter I shall cherish among my challenges to higher endeavor, I am,
Affectionately your friend,
Recommended Resources
- Find services near you, for people who are blind or visually impaired
- Learn about a free, accessible app from the American Foundation for the Blind for people who are losing their vision.
- Information for veterans coping with vision loss
- Sign up with AFB for more helpful information and tips for everyday living
