On a beautiful winter afternoon, a representative from the Bethlehem Globe-Times entered a Hotel Bethlehem suite with misgivings. Never before had the interviewer attempted to carry on a conversation with someone who could neither see nor hear.

But after a few moments in the flower-filled sitting-room, any sense of dread he felt vanished. The sweet dignity and warm smiles of both Helen Keller and her secretary, Miss Polly Thomson, set him completely at ease.

"Have you been able to receive any impressions of Bethlehem?" the interviewer asked.

"Oh, yes," Keller quickly replied. "I feel the invigorating air, and the breezes coming down from your mountains and the kindliness of your people."

Helen Keller arrived the night before from her home in Queens, N.Y., to a group awaiting her at the Union Station.

The internationally-known Keller was in town as an honored guest and key speaker for Bethlehem's First Educational Week for the Blind, held during the week of Dec. 6-12, 1930.

Sponsored by the American Foundation for the Blind in cooperation with the Lions Club and other organizations, the objective of the week was to bring closer to the "seeing" public the problems and activities of those deprived of sight.

It was hoped that the special week would awaken so much interest in the sightless and their capabilities that long after it was over there would be a great eagerness by many to lend a helping hand in aiding the blind.

Under the direction of Mrs. R. Parke Hutchinson, women from various church groups in the community hosted exhibits and demonstrations held throughout the week at 72 West Broad St., which acted as the Educational Week for the Blind's headquarters.

At the headquarters, interested citizens could witness many of the skills and accomplishments those deprived of eyesight could undertake if taught and helped. Crowds watched as young women wrote on typewriters, sewed, crocheted, wrote in Braille and took dictation by Dictaphone.

Out of the estimated 138 blind people in Northampton County, 32 were employed and earning wages. Many others had the ability to work as well if they could be reached and taught an occupation.

What greater example for the region's blind population could there be than Helen Keller, whose life demonstrated what hard work and perseverance could over come. Despite being left deaf and blind at 19 months due to an unknown illness, Keller went on to be the first deafblind person to earn a bachelor of arts degree. Keller dedicated her life to helping others and through her tireless efforts, helped change the way the world looks at people with disabilities.

The morning after Helen Keller arrived in Bethlehem, the school children of the city grades nine and up were given the privilege of hearing her speak in Liberty HS's auditorium. By Keller's side was a Girl Scout guard of honor, who accompanied her during her lectures in Bethlehem.

After a number of short addresses and selections from the band, the audience rose as Miss Keller and Miss Polly Thomson entered and took their places behind the amplifier. While Keller kept one hand on the mouth and throat of her secretary, Miss Thomson asked her a series of questions.

For one not accustomed to her voice it could be difficult to understand, but Keller spoke slowly and her secretary repeated any words which the audience could not make out. She told the students that she enjoyed reading Mark Twain's books best of all, but also liked Conrad, Dickens and Galsworthy. While in college she studied French, German, Latin, Greek, mathematics, history, philosophy and literature.

The following day Helen Keller again gave an address at Liberty HS to officially open the Educational Week for the Blind. As every seat on the floor and in the gallery was filled, several other rooms in the building were equipped with amplifiers to take care of the overflow.

Edwin Grasse, an internationally famed blind violinist, opened the meeting with an outstanding performance.

Like the day before, Keller was the final speaker and walked onto the stage to an enormous applause, which she felt through the vibrations in the floor.

Helen Keller made a forceful plea for those in the audience to close their eyes and try to imagine what it would mean if they were never to see again. She expressed her pleasure in the Lions Club and all they had been doing to assist the blind for the past six years.

At the end of her speech, she was given flowers, of which she had an enormous passion for.

No one in attendance that day likely forgot the meeting's finale when Helen Keller, with her hand on the piano in order to feel the rhythm, led the audience in singing "Nearer My God to Thee."

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