Anne Sullivan Macy and Helen Keller, no date or location given. Helen Adams Keller (June 27, 1880 - June 1, 1968) was an American author, political activist, and lecturer. She was 19 months old when she contracted an illness, which might have been scarlet fever or meningitis, that left her deaf and blind. In 1887 Anne Sullivan became Keller's instructor. A prolific author, Keller was well-traveled, and was outspoken in her anti-war convictions. A member of the Socialist Party of America and the Industrial Workers of the World, she campaigned for women's suffrage, labor rights, socialism, and other radical left causes. Keller suffered a series of strokes in 1961 and spent the last years of her life at her home. She died in her sleep in 1968 at the age of 87. Johanna "Anne" Mansfield Sullivan Macy (April 14, 1866 - October 20, 1936) was an Irish-American teacher. Visually impaired and only 20 years old, she became Keller's instructor. It was the beginning of a 49-year relationship, Sullivan evolving into governess and then eventual companion. She died in 1936, at age 70 after a coma, with Keller holding her hand.