Beulah Moody, former director of education at Easterseals Western and Central Pennsylvania, recently celebrated her 100th birthday as well as a 19-year career of benefitting children who have disabilities through Easterseals.
Easterseals Western and Central Pennsylvania was once the Easter Seals Society of Allegheny County. The organization is dedicated to helping children who have disabilities.
Moody spent her birthday reflecting on her past 100 years, including her work with Easterseals.
“I think we helped a lot of people,” she said.
In particular, Moody remembers a boy who was just six years old.
“His mother left him lying on his bed for his first six years,” Moody said. “He didn’t have any hair on the back of his head because it was always against a bed or the floor. When he came to us, we did a huge amount of work with him, and attached him to a therapy board. We hoisted the board up, so that for the first time in his life, he was vertical. And the look that came into his eyes when he saw the world from that point of view -- almost as if he was standing -- was something I will never forget.”
Moody looks forward to her future years of life; she remains active in her community and alert to the world around her.
“I was born during the First World War,” Moody said. “I waited four years during World War II for the man I married and worried about my son during the Vietnam War. There have been a few bumps and bruises along the way, but now, under the care of my loving son, his beautiful wife and my precious grandchildren, I would say it has been a beautiful life, and still is.”
