The Stanley Cup & Stuttering

Pittsburgh Penguin Bryan Rust, a Michigan native and graduate of the University of Notre Dame, was cited in 2016 as one of the Penguins’ stars in their impressive Stanley Cup run. A champion on the ice, Rust has also been a champion for stuttering, openly discussing his struggles with several media outlets.

Bryan and his older brother Matt (who was also drafted by the Pittsburgh Penguins) attended speech therapy together when they were young. "I’ve kind of embraced it," Bryan said. "My older brother has the same thing. It’s kind of something we’ve grown up with together and just dealt with. I’ve had a lot of people around me that have really been supportive with it. Sometimes, it’s not so bad. Sometimes, it’s really bad ….. It’s just one of those things I’ve learned to deal with.”

On May 2, 2016, Bryan Rust became the first rookie in NHL history to score two goals in game seven of the Stanley Cup playoffs, helping the Penguins to victory in game seven of the semi-finals. After this publicized feat, Sports Illustrated published an article about Rust and his brother. “Born three years apart, Matt and Bryan were bonded by more than hockey. As children, both attended speech therapy to help their stutters, and found themselves subject to the same type of teasing from peers. ‘It’s not the easiest thing to go through as a kid,' Matt said. ‘We were always there for each other. That’s probably a story in itself.'"

In his year with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the AHL, Bryan won the team award given to the player most cooperative with the media. In his rookie season with the Pittsburgh Penguins, a January 20, 2016 article in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette titled “Speech impediment does not slow down Penguins RW Bryan Rust” brought his stuttering to the forefront with Penguins fans.

Last spring Rust helped the Penguins win a second Stanley Cup in a row, which hockey fans will laud as the ultimate. The stuttering community applauds his win and his transparency in discussing his stutter with the public.

From the Winter 2018 Newsletter

CELEBRITY FOCUS

Alan Rabinowitz

Alan Rabinowitz, Ph.D., who passed away in 2018, was an explorer, wildlife conservationist, and author. He established the Hukawng Valley Tiger Reserve in northern Myanmar, which is about the size of the state of Vermont.

His love for animals began when he was very young.

Mel Tillis

Mel Tillis, born Lonnie Melvin Tillis, was an influential figure in country music, both as a songwriter and a performer. His journey to fame was marked by overcoming personal challenges, including a stutter that he turned into a defining part of his public persona.

Bill Walton

From BillWalton.com

Thank you for your interest in my life long problem with my speech and communication skills. I was a very shy and reserved young man who could not speak at all without severely stuttering until I was 28 years old. Always a success in the classroom and on the basketball court, I took refuge in the things that I did well as a youngster. A straight A student, my athletic abilities covered the deficiencies that limited my overall growth and development. The game of basketball was my religion, the gym my church. It was a convenient way of avoiding my responsibilities of developing my human relation skills.

When I was 28, a chance encounter at a social event with Hall of Fame broadcaster Marty Glickman completely changed my life in so many ways that things have never been the same since, nor have they ever been better. That day, in a very brief, private conversation (one way, mind you, since I literally could not speak at the time) Marty explained, patiently and concisely, that talking, communicating was a skill not a gift or a birthright and that like any skill, whether it be sports, music, business or whatever, needed to be developed over a lifetime of hard work, discipline, organization and practice. Marty gave me some simple tips that day and then encouraged me to take those keys and apply them to methods of learning that I had received from the special teachers that I had come across in my life, particularly the 6 Hall of Fame basketball coaches that I had played for throughout my career. The beginning of my whole new life was as simple as that. No gimmicks, tricks or shortcuts. Just the realization that with some help, guidance and a lot of hard work that I too could do what seemed so easy, simple and natural to everyone else, yet seemed impossibly out of my reach and comprehension.

Emily Blunt

Actress Emily Blunt struggled with stuttering early in her life. A teacher encouraged her to act in a school play at age 12 despite her stuttering.

Blunt’s name is prominently featured on the Stuttering Foundation's list of Famous People Who Stutter.

John Melendez

He is a talented musician, actor, and comedian. Listen to a podcast.