Genevieve Caulfield

Genevieve Caulfield
Born	(1888-05-08)May 8, 1888 Suffolk, Virginia, U.S.
Died	December 12, 1972(1972-12-12) (aged 84)
Occupation	Teacher

Genevieve Caulfield (May 8, 1888 – December 12, 1972) was a blind American teacher, who started a school for blind people in Thailand.

Born in Suffolk, Virginia,^[1] she lost her sight in an accident when a doctor put the wrong drops into her eyes when she was two months old. She went on to attend Overbrook School for the Blind and Columbia Teachers College.^[2]

Since her youth she had dreamed of becoming a teacher to help create a better understanding between Japanese and Americans. Her dream came true in 1923, when she went to Japan, where she taught English for a living as well as Braille to blind students.^[1]

In 1938 she opened the Bangkok School for the Blind, partly financed by her own savings, after she learned that blind children were considered useless in Thailand. Resisting repatriation during World War II, she stayed in Bangkok and continued to work for her school. From 1956 to 1960, she organized a school for the blind and a rehabilitation center for boys in Saigon.^[1] There is a statue in her honor at the school in Bangkok which still exists today.

Her autobiography The Kingdom Within was published in 1960.

Recognition

In 1961, Caulfield was awarded the Ramon Magsaysay Award for International Understanding. On 6 December 1963, she received the Presidential Medal of Freedom^[2] from President John F. Kennedy in recognition of her work for the blind in Asia. The award was given by President Lyndon B. Johnson in honor of President John F. Kennedy.

Her niece was actress Joan Caulfield.^[3]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c Shavit, David (1990). The United States in Asia: A Historical Dictionary, p.87. Greenwood Publishing Group.
^ ^a ^b Moss, Ruth (October 20, 1963). "She Proves the Blind Can Lead the Blind!". Chicago Tribune. p. 2-Section 5. Retrieved 1 October 2015.
^ Caulfield, Genevieve. "The Kingdom Within". Harper, 1960

Ramon Magsaysay Award recipients

Government Service (1958–2008)

Cambodia	Ek Sonn Chan
China	Yuan Longping
India	C.D. Deshmukh J. M. Lyngdoh
Indonesia	Raden Kodijat Ali Sadikin
Japan	Morihiko Hiramatsu Hiroshi Kuroki Yukiharu Miki
Laos	Keo Viphakone
Malaysia	Mohamed Suffian Mohamed Hashim B. C. Shekhar
Pakistan	Akhtar Hameed Khan Ibn Abdur Rehman
Philippines	Jose Vasquez Aguilar Francisca Reyes-Aquino Hilario Davide Jr. Grace Padaca Jesse Robredo Jovito R. Salonga Miriam Defensor Santiago Haydee Yorac
Singapore	Goh Keng Swee
Thailand	Anand Panyarachun Chamlong Srimuang Jon Ungphakorn Phon Sangsingkeo Prawase Wasi Puey Ungpakorn
Taiwan	Shih-chu Hsu Li Kwoh-ting Jiang Menglin

Public Service (1958–2008)

Burma	Tee Tee Luce
Ceylon	Mary H. Rutnam
China	Gao Yaojie Jiang Yanyong Liang Congjie Wu Qing
India	Baba Amte Banoo Jehangir Coyaji Manibhai Desai Jayaprakash Narayan V. Shanta
Indonesia	H.B. Jassin Teten Masduki
Pakistan	Ruth Pfau
Philippines	Pedro Orata Center for Agriculture and Rural Development Mutually Reinforcing Institutions (CARD MRI)
South Korea	Kim Sun-tae Park Won-soon
Spain based in Philippines	Joaquin Villalonga
Thailand	Fua Hariphitak Mechai Viravaidya Nilawan Pintong Phra Parnchand Prateep Ungsongtham Hata Sirindhorn Sithiporn Kridakara Sophon Suphapong Therdchai Jivacate Thongbai Thongpao

Community Leadership (1958–2008)

Bangladesh	Tahrunessa Abdullah Fazle Hasan Abed Muhammad Yunus Zafrullah Chowdhury Mohammed Yeasin Angela Gomes
Burma	Cynthia Maung
India	Mandakini Amte & Prakash Amte Mabelle Arole & Rajanikant Arole Pandurang Shastri Athavale Chandi Prasad Bhatt Ela Bhatt Vinoba Bhave Aruna Roy Shantha Sinha Rajendra Singh
Japan	Fusaye Ichikawa
Laos	Sombath Somphone
Malaysia	Tunku Abdul Rahman
Nepal	Mahabir Pun
Philippines	Gawad Kalinga Community Development Foundation Antonio Meloto
Thailand	Aree Valyasevi Krasae Chanawongse Prayong Ronnarong
Tibet	14th Dalai Lama

Journalism, Literature, and the Creative Communication Arts (1958–2008)

Bangladesh	Matiur Rahman Abdullah Abu Sayeed
Burma	Edward Michael Law-Yone
Ceylon or Sri Lanka	Wannakuwatta Amaradeva Tarzie Vittachi
India	Mahasweta Devi Palagummi Sainath Amitabha Chowdhury
Indonesia	Atmakusuma Astraatmadja Mochtar Lubis
Japan	Akira Kurosawa Yasuji Hanamori Michiko Ishimure Akio Ishii
Nepal	Bharat Koirala
Philippines	Zacarias Sarian F. Sionil José Lino Brocka Radio Veritas James Reuter Bienvenido Lumbera Nick Joaquin Raul Locsin Eugenia Duran Apostol Sheila Coronel
Thailand	Prayoon Chanyavongs
Great Britain based in Philippines	Robert McCulloch Dick

Peace and International Understanding (1958–2008)

China	Tang Xiyang
India	Mother Teresa Jockin Arputham Laxminarayan Ramdas
Indonesia	Ahmad Syafi'i Maarif
Japan	Ikuo Hirayama Tetsu Nakamura Saburo Okita Seiei Toyama
Nepal	Sanduk Ruit
Pakistan	Ibn Abdur Rehman
Philippines	Operation Brotherhood Summer Institute of Linguistics William Masterson Harold Ray Watson International Institute of Rural Reconstruction Press Foundation of Asia Asian Institute of Management Corazon Aquino
South Korea	Pomnyun Sunim
Thailand	Asian Institute of Technology The Royal Project
United States based in Thailand	Genevieve Caulfield

Emergent Leadership (2001–)

Burma	Ka Hsaw Wa
China	Chen Guangcheng
Cambodia	Oung Chanthol
India	Sanjiv Chaturvedi Arvind Kejriwal Nileema Mishra Sandeep Pandey
Indonesia	Ambrosius Ruwindrijarto Dita Indah Sari
Philippines	Benjamin Abadiano
South Korea	Yoon Hye-ran
Sri Lanka	Ananda Galappatti
East Timor	Aniceto Guterres Lopes
United States based in Hong Kong	Chung To

Uncategorized (2009–)

Bangladesh	Syeda Rizwana Hasan A.H.M. Noman Khan
Cambodia	Yang Saing Koma Koul Panha
China	Fu Qiping Huo Daishan Ma Jun Pan Yue Yu Xiaogang
India	Kulandei Francis Harish Hande Deep Joshi
Indonesia	Hasanain Juaini Tri Mumpuni
Japan	Tadatoshi Akiba
Philippines	Alternative Indigenous Development Foundation, Inc. (AIDFI) Christopher Bernido Ma. Victoria Carpio-Bernido Romulo Davide Antonio Oposa Jr.
Taiwan	Chen Shu-chu
Thailand	Krisana Kraisintu