Foundation Reminds Us "People Who Stutter Can Do Amazing Things”

For Immediate Release
Contact: Greg Wilson
greg@curleycompany.com
571-239-7474

New York (May 12, 2014) – Today marks the start of National Stuttering Awareness Week, which runs May 12-18, according to the Stuttering Foundation. Traditionally, the week is dedicated to building global awareness of stuttering — more than 70 million people worldwide and three million people in the United States struggle with stuttering every day.

“This week is a time for us to remind the world that people who stutter can achieve amazing things,” said Jane Fraser, president of the Stuttering Foundation. “Unfortunately, we still live in a world that allows stuttering to be mocked and ridiculed. The end result is that countless children who stutter face teasing and torment at school just because they speak differently.”

Despite the great strides afforded the stuttering community by the movie The King’s Speech and its accurate and moving portrayal of the effects of a severe stutter, Hollywood portrayed people who stutter in a negative light for decades. Persons who stutter were portrayed as deranged, violent or otherwise incompatible with the social norm. Some of these movies over the years have been Dead Again, My Cousin Vinny, Urban Legend and Primal Fear – just to name a few.

“We spend a great deal of time heralding the accomplishments of persons who stutter on our website, of celebrities and people next door, to inspire and give hope to those who struggle,” added Fraser.

A listing of “Famous People Who Stutter” can be found on the Foundation’s website, www.stutteringhelp.org. A free poster can also be downloaded.

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Foundation Spokesperson Jane Fraser  

Jane Fraser is president of The Stuttering Foundation and co-author of If Your Child Stutters: A Guide for Parents, 8th edition. She is also vice president of the Action for Stammering Children, Michael Palin Centre in London.

About the Foundation 

Malcolm Fraser, a successful businessman and stutterer, went on to establish and endow the nonprofit Stuttering Foundation in 1947. The Stuttering Foundation provides a toll-free helpline, 800-992-9392, and free online resources on its Website, www.StutteringHelp.org, including services, referrals and support to people who stutter and their families, as well as support for research into the causes of stuttering.

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CELEBRITY FOCUS

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.

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.

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.

Jack Paar

While Jack Paar is among the most prominent of the entertainers on the Stuttering Foundation’s list of Famous People Who Stutter, he deserves special recognition as he was among the first to openly address his stuttering in public. As host of The Tonight Show from 1957-1962, he spoke of his difficulties as a stuttering child and teenager, giving hope to young people.

Ken Venturi

As much of the nation watches the U.S. Open Golf Championship, it is impossible not to think about our late friend Ken Venturi. Ken overcame many challenges to win the Open at Congressional in 1964 and go on to become the voice of golf for more than three decades.

However, Ken faced no bigger obstacle than stuttering. Ken Venturi was a champion to those who stutter, going out of his way to share his personal experience when consulted by a colleague, friend, or child who stutters.