Geraldine Lawhorn

Geraldine Jerrie Lawhorn (December 31, 1916 – July 3, 2016) was an American deafblind performer, actress, pianist, and educator. She taught at the Hadley Institute for the Blind and Visually Impaired and was a prominent figure in the deafblind community. At 67 years old, she became the first deafblind African American in the United States to earn a college degree.

Geraldine spent her childhood between Dayton and Chicago. When she was eighteen months old, her family settled in Chicago, where they started a confectioner's trade business. After her parents' divorce in 1922, Geraldine returned to Dayton with her mother and started elementary school. However, a traumatizing experience compelled them to move back to Chicago, where she lived with her mother and her brothers. During the Great Depression, which started in 1929, the Lawhorns went through financial hardships. Pearl Walker opened a beauty shop in their apartment to earn some money and have time to take care of her children. Doctors credited this handicap with measles she contracted when she turned five. It was an emotionally painful situation. Nonetheless, Jerrie did not stay idle; instead, she became involved in many activities. She attended the monthly meetings of the Fellowship Circle of the Blind, where she discovered drama performance and started writing plays for the fellowship programs. The young lady performed her first full-length dramatic recital on May 2, 1940, at Poro College. Afterwards, she started teaching two correspondence courses: "Independent Living for Those Without Sight or Hearing" and "Verse Writing and Poetry". The poetry courses were free, and twenty-four students signed up.

Three days after, the new graduate flew with a friend to New York City, where David Hartman interviewed her on the nationwide television show Good Morning America. On June 17, 1983, Geraldine received a letter from President Reagan congratulating her on her degree. Geraldine continued to be active in the deafblind community. She encouraged deafblind people to never give up and "keep trying". She supported that people had the same goals but took different roads.

Late years In the 2000s, Geraldine traveled throughout the United States to educate people on how to teach deafblind people. She lived alone in her South Side apartment and daily used a lot of equipment like the Braille cooking utensils. She wished she could drive and be more active in the deafblind cause. Nevertheless, she stayed grateful for the opportunity she had in life and said: "I enjoy what I get and I don't worry about the rest". The same year, Geraldine received the Ninth Annual Mercedes Mentor Award in Chicago.

In 2011, Jerrie Lawhorn retired from the Hadley Institute for the Blind and Visually Impaired after 40 years of teaching. The same year, the Winnetka-Northfield Chamber of Commerce awarded Geraldine as the Winnetka Teacher of the Year. She was honored during the Winnetka-Northfield chamber's 35th Annual Recognition Lunch on May 4, 2011, at the Winnetka Community House. Miss Lawhorn received other recognition in her lifetime. For instance, she was introduced into the Disabled Persons Hall of Fame in Chicago and received the Hadley School's Challenge of Living Award. Furthermore, Geraldine was treasurer for the Club of Blind-Deaf Adults in Chicago for many years and served at the Illinois Advisory Board for Services for Persons Who are Deaf-Blind directed by James Thompson, former Illinois governor. Geraldine Lawhorn receiving a price from the Hadley Institute for the Blind and Visually Impaired. In the top right-hand corner, her longtime interpreter Charita Graham

Geraldine Lawhorn died on July 3, 2016, at Weiss Memorial Hospital on the North Side of Chicago. Her friends, relatives, and students described her as an open, joyful and optimistic woman. Miss Lawhorn left all her estate to the Hadley Institute for the Blind and Visually Impaired.

List of books written