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

Marathon Golfer Raises $2,500 for Stuttering Through Hundred Hole Hike

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

Stuttering Helped Start a Revolution

Camille Desmoulins, a French journalist and politician who stuttered, helped to incite and inflame the angry crowds who attacked and tore down the Bastille on July 14, 1789. Historians consider the fall of Bastille the flashpoint of the French Revolution.

Click here for other Famous People Who Stutter

Stuttering Foundation: “By George, He Has Big Shoes to Fill!”

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

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (July 24, 2013) — Jane Fraser, president of the Stuttering Foundation, had the following reaction to the naming of the most recent British heir to the monarchy:

“By George, he has big shoes to fill!

A Blunder from Down Under:

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

Unsolicited longitudinal onset data on preschool stuttering

A Blunder from Down Under:

Preschool Data

Over the last several years, the Stuttering Foundation has kept accurate data on the calls it has received from concerned parents of 15,374 preschool children who are reported to be stuttering.

Our thoughts on the Australian study on preschool stuttering

As you may have already seen, the recent “big news” in the stuttering community is a new study from Australia. Below is the abstract sent to major media outlets earlier this week. It has spurred a number of misleading headlines. We have serious concerns about this abstract, the study, and how it has been cast by the media:

The Abstract (delivered to select media)

PRESCHOOLERS WHO STUTTER DO JUST FINE EMOTIONALLY AND SOCIALLY

Parents, Don't Be Misled — Early Intervention Pays Off

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Contact: Greg Wilson
gregwilsonpr@gmail.com 

Meet Lionel!

If you live in the New York area, and have ever watched the news on WPIX, you know Lionel. And now we know Lionel, too. Lionel has become the latest celebrity to speak out on behalf of those who stutter, and it won’t be long before the entire country starts hearing radio public service announcements for the Stuttering Foundation featuring his wonderful voice.

International Stuttering Awareness Day

October 22 was designated International Stuttering Awareness Day (ISAD) in 1998, sixteen years ago. This day is intended to raise public awareness of stuttering, which affects one percent of the world's p

Just What the Doctor Ordered: Help for Kids Who Stutter Sent to 53,727 Pediatricians

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

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (October 15, 2013) — “This is one of the most helpful pieces that I have been sent in my 27 years of private practice,” wrote a doctor from Washington state.

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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.

Lewis Carroll

The recent Disney version of Lewis Carroll’s classic, Alice in Wonderland, garnered a great deal of media hype. Even though the mainstream media has not made mention that Carroll was a person who stuttered, his family history gives credence to the discovery of the genetic link to stuttering. Carroll was born to parents who were first cousins; almost all of their eleven children, three girls and seven boys, struggled with stuttering past childhood.

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 Stossel

John Stossel is one of the most recognized and articulate reporters today. However, he once considered giving up his broadcasting career because of his stuttering.

“Fear of stuttering can easily become worse than the stuttering itself,” observed Stossel. “The idea that I’m on television and making speeches is still a shock to me sometimes.”

Darren Sproles

Darren Sproles, a former player for The Philadelphia Eagles, the New Orleans Saints and the San Diego Chargers, made history in 2007 when he became the first player in NFL history to return a kickoff and a punt for his first two NFL touchdowns in the same game. In 2021, he was selected to be inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.