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

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.

Some Words From Our Blogger Voon Pang

Hello everyone, my name is Voon Pang and I have been blogging for the Stuttering Foundation since August of this year. I am a Speech Language Pathologist working for the Stuttering Treatment and Research Trust in Auckland, New Zealand.

ASHA in Atlanta

The 2012 convention of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) was held Nov. 15-18 in Atlanta. This year the Stuttering Foundation had a great location with a 30-foot, corner booth.

Singing and Stuttering: What We Know

The recent success of American Idol hopeful Lazaro Arbos has the entire country talking about singing and stuttering.

"Understanding what dramatically reduces stuttering during singing may eventually help us understand stuttering better," explains Dr. Barry Guitar of the University of Vermont, author of several Stuttering Foundation publications. He offers the following comments on singing and stuttering:

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.

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.

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

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

Photo caption: Rita's Chairman Tom Christopoul (right) presents Stuttering Foundation President Jane Fraser (second from right) with a $10,000 donation on behalf of American Idol finalist Lazaro Arbos. They are joined by Lazaro's parents Gisela Andraca and Reinaldo (left) at the Rita's Italian Ice in Naples, Fla. Download photo

The True Legacy of Lazaro Arbos

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

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (April 11, 2013) — Jane Fraser, president of the Stuttering Foundation, had the following reaction to the departure of Lazaro Arbos from American Idol Season 12:

“Bravo, Lazaro, Bravo!!

The True Legacy of Lazaro Arbos

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (April 11, 2013) — Jane Fraser, president of the Stuttering Foundation, had the following reaction to the departure of Lazaro Arbos from American Idol Season 12:

“Bravo, Lazaro, Bravo!!

Pages

CELEBRITY FOCUS

King George

In November 2010, worldwide movie audiences were presented with a most interesting and unusual movie release with The King’s Speech, starring Colin Firth as King George VI and Helena Bonham Carter as his wife Elizabeth.

Unfortunately, history may have forgotten the courageous and inspiring story of Prince Albert who stuttered badly and never dreamed that he would ever be king when his older brother, King Edward VIII, abruptly abdicated the throne in 1936 to marry Wallis Simpson, an American divorcee.

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.

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.

Bill Withers

While Bill Withers has long been on the Stuttering Foundation's list of Famous People Who Stutter, many people probably didn’t realize he stuttered. He passed away on March 30, 2020.

Born in 1938 in Slab Fork, W.V., Withers was the youngest of six children. When his father died when Withers was small, he was raised by his mother and grandmother, both of whom worked as domestics.

Frank Wolf

This Virginian congressman has served in the U.S. House of Representatives since 1981. The longtime supporter of the Stuttering Foundation drew national attention to childhood stuttering in 2006 when he submitted an article about Tiger Woods from the SFA newsletter to the Congressional Record. The congressman is featured in the Stuttering Foundation's Famous People Who Stutter brochure.