1947

Judith "Judy" Heumann was born on December 18th, 1947 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to German-Jewish immigrant parents Ilse and Werner Heumann.
1948
After her family relocated to Brooklyn, New York, Judy contracted polio at the age of 18 months. She was in an iron lung for three months and then began using a wheelchair for mobility.

1950s

At the age of 5 when registering for kindergarten, Judy was denied the right to attend school. The school was inaccessible and her parents were told she would be a "fire hazard" due to her wheelchair. Instead, the school district sent a teacher to her house for only two and a half hours a week.
After years of her parents fighting the school district, Judy finally attended school in the fourth grade. She was put in a segregated classroom for disabled students.
1965
Judy graduated high school and went on to study at Long Island University. She majored in Speech and Theater with a minor in Education.

1969
