Valley Center of the Deaf

07/10/2026

06/28/2026

Today, June 27, is Helen Keller's birthday, and the heart of DeafBlind Awareness Week, which began in her honor.

The earliest proclamations called it "Helen Keller DeafBlind Awareness Week." The framing has evolved, but the connection hasn't.

Helen wrote 14 books. Among the lesser-known is The World I Live In (1908), a collection of essays. In it, she wrote:

"I would not part with the warm, endearing contact of human hands or the wealth of form, the nobility and fullness that press into my palms."

More than a century later, her words still hold.

Happy birthday, Helen.

Learn more: https://www.helenkeller.org/dbaw2026/

Image description:
A black and white image of two women sitting side by side. On the left is Helen Keller, a young woman. She wears a dark, high-necked Victorian dress with a wide cream lace collar, and her hair is pulled back. To her right is Anne Sullivan. Helen's hands rest near her own lap, with her right hand turned to receive communication from Anne, their hands meeting at the center of the frame. Anne wears a lighter dress with puffed sleeves and is holding an open book at chest height. She is reading from the book and communicating the words to Helen through touch. Overlaid on the lower portion of the image in white text is the quote: "The warm, endearing contact of human hands." Beneath it, in smaller text: Helen Keller, The World I Live In, 1908.

06/27/2026

DeafBlind Awareness Week starts today!

This year's theme, Connected by Touch: Breaking Barriers, Building Bridges, celebrates touch as the foundation of connection for the DeafBlind community. Through Protactile language, tactile sign language, haptics, braille, and assistive technology, DeafBlind individuals communicate, navigate, learn, work, and thrive.

The moment captured here is one of five images featured on this year's campaign poster, each one a different expression of how touch builds connection across spaces we all share.

The week ahead is full. Two webinars bring national experts together on tactile Orientation and Mobility strategies and Protactile philosophy. Four free online courses, available throughout June, offer deeper learning on haptics, etiologies, communication access, and interpreter guidelines. And communities across the country are hosting events of their own throughout June and into July.

Visit the DBAW 2026 hub for the full schedule, the downloadable poster, and the growing list of state proclamations: www.helenkeller.org/dbaw2026

Image description: A man and a woman stand facing each other in a brightly lit hallway, their hands joined in tactile sign communication. The man, on the left, wears a gray ball cap with sunglasses perched on the brim and a dark t-shirt. The woman, on the right, has long auburn hair and wears a black long-sleeved top. She wears a hearing aid and holds the handle of a white cane, visible at her side. White overlay text at the top reads "Connected by Touch." At the bottom left, white text reads "DeafBlind Awareness Week, June 25 – July 1, 2026." The Helen Keller National Center logo appears at the bottom right.

06/26/2026

SSP services are so important for the DeafBlind community. We love supporting the DeafBlind community!

06/26/2026

Register here: https://nam02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fsites.google.com%2Fview%2Fazpeerandfamilyorg%2Fget-involved%2Fcivic-leadership-development-training&data=05%7C02%7Ckarif%40ccs-soaz.org%7C17ec3188c35148a38dfe08ded0b6fd4c%7C7d4c121e015d476388ebea5fe892680b%7C0%7C0%7C639177681542689317%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=shQA%2FRsB8%2BRX04bzwzG%2BjIIZTCpnTa%2FBE6YEe6S9jYs%3D&reserved=0

06/26/2026

Happy DeafBlind Awareness Week.