Hide | Stuttering Foundation: A Nonprofit Organization Helping Those Who Stutter

In Support of American Idol Finalist Lazaro Arbos, Stuttering Foundation Receives $10,000 Donation from Rita’s Italian Ice

For Immediate Release
Contact: Greg Wilson
gregwilsonpr@gmail.com 
571-239-7474

Stuttering Foundation Offers Six Tips for American Idol Judges When Speaking with Those Who Stutter

For Immediate Release
Contact: Greg Wilson
gregwilsonpr@gmail.com
571-239-7474

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (Feb. 6, 2013) — American Idol contestant Lazaro Arbos threw the judges — and the worldwide TV audience — for a loop when he stuttered during his audition on the show a few weeks ago.

Singing and Stuttering: What We Know

For Immediate Release
Contact: Greg Wilson
gregwilsonpr@gmail.com
571-239-7474

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (Jan. 28, 2013) — The recent success of American Idol hopeful Lazaro Arbos has the entire country talking about singing and stuttering.

Foundation Releases New DVDs

Evidence-Based Practice and Practice-Based Evidence: Closing the Gap

Discussions about evidence-based practice often culminate in claims that there is one best approach to treatment of a particular type of client, or that we lack appropriate evidence or that clinicians lack access to what evidence we have.

Quality Journalism Honored

The Stuttering Foundation announced its 2012 Awards for Excellence in Journalism during May. “Journalists in a variety of settings have done an outstanding job of focusing on stuttering during the past year,” said Jane Fraser, president of the 65-year-old nonprofit foundation. “We are seeing a significant shift in how we reach people - not only through newspapers and columnists but also through websites and blogs. We are particularly excited about increased outreach in Canada and within the Spanish speaking community.”

Bloodstein Presented with Prestigious Malcolm Fraser Award

The 1999 Malcolm Faser Award, which honors excellence in the field of fluency, has been presnted by the Stuttering Founation of America to Oliver Bloodstein, a speech-language pathologist. Bloodstein is a Professor Emeritus of Speech at Brooklyn College of the City University of New York and has served on the school's faculty for almost 50 years.

The Stuttering Foundation: Giving a Voice to People Who Stutter for 65 Years

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (Dec. 19, 2012) — The Stuttering Foundation, www.StutteringHelp.org, celebrates its 65th anniversary this year, marking more than six decades as the world’s foremost non-profit dedicated to helping those who stutter.

A Fresh Look at Avoidance Reduction Therapy

Watch a clip from Avoidance Reduction Therapy in a Group Setting

American Idol Contestant is 'Already a Winner' to Stuttering Community

For Immediate Release
Contact: Greg Wilson
gregwilsonpr@gmail.com
571-239-7474

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (Jan. 18, 2013) — Stuttering Foundation president Jane Fraser had the following comment about last night's American Idol show featuring Lazaro Arbos, a contestant who stutters:

Czech Republic Celebrates International Stuttering Awareness Day

The ancient Moravian city of Brno in the Czech Republic was the setting for an exciting workshop focusing on stuttering in the days leading up to International Stuttering Awareness Day (ISAD). The 10th annual conference of the Speech Therapists Association of the Czech Republic was held Friday, Oct. 19, 2012.

Pages

CELEBRITY FOCUS

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.

Byron Pitts

Byron Pitts has brought much attention to stuttering with his memoir, Step Out on Nothing: How Faith and Family Helped Me Conquer Life’s Challenges, released in September, 2009. The book not only details his speech difficulties, but also his illiteracy until age 12 and his unstable family life. Pitts overcame the odds to become the chief national correspondent with ABC News.

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.

Bruce Willis

While the world knows Bruce Willis as an A-list actor, few know that he struggled with stuttering throughout his first 20 years.

Walter Bruce Willis was born in 1955 in West Germany to his German mother, Marlene, and his American GI father, David Willis. The family settled in David’s hometown of Penns Grove, New Jersey in 1957, and the couple has three other children.

James Earl Jones

Actor James Earl Jones, a Broadway, television and movie star, was well-known for his voice as Darth Vader in Star Wars and his book Voices and Silences. Jones spoke some of the most memorable lines in the history of American film, but the man known for his voice was once afflicted with a severe stutter.