The Helen Keller Eye Research Foundation continues the work to which its namesake dedicated her life. It is from her achievements that we draw our inspiration. And our global efforts to end blindness and deafness through medical research are a result of her belief that no matter what the obstacle anything is possible.
Our Mission Statement
Guided by Helen Keller’s legacy, the Foundation develops pioneering advances in vision research, answering her plea to “help me hasten the day when there shall be no preventable blindness.”
We are the
Helen Keller Foundation.
Our History
In 1888, a world burst open in the form of a splash of water in the hand of a young blind and deaf girl at a well in Tuscumbia, Alabama. She instantly learned that water and other things have names, and she later called it “the birthday of my soul.” Exactly a century later in 1988, Helen Keller’s family joined a group of committed scientists to form a foundation in her now famous name, and in her home state, with the mission of continuing her victories over blindness and deafness through research and education.
Our Accomplishments
The Helen Keller Eye Research Foundation is a proven entity with a track record of substantial accomplishments, out of proportion to its size. Using donated funds responsibly (82.32% to program services, excluding in-kind services), the Foundation has used its scientific breakthroughs to save sight and end blindness, while changing one life at a time.
Between 1990 and 2024, the Foundation partnered with volunteer research physicians and Retina Specialists of Alabama to produce over 2000 scientific articles and lectures in 67 countries on six continents.
About Our
Staff
About the