Robert Hurd who accepted the Certificate of Merit from the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame on behalf of his mother for her crossing of the Hellespont in 1929. Hurd recalls the following of Eleanor Studley, then a student at Smith College:

“My mother was born deaf in an era in which she would have been categorized as Deaf and Dumb. Her parents refused to accept this stigma and she was taught to read lips and excel in areas where she could. While attending Smith College, she also took classes for the hard of hearing. My family has been long grateful to Smith College in helping her to overcome a handicap and live a life as normally as possible. She was a great example to the world of someone striving to overcome her limitation.”

Copyright © 2012 by Open Water Source