My Disability Lesson

By Andrew Feese
2010 FAME Essay Winner

This is a new age for people who are disabled. There are electronic aides, there are therapists, and there are exceptions.                      

Last week the Stuttering Foundation and President Jane Fraser were mentioned in an article on the Catholic News Service. The article dealt with how some Catholic priests deal with stuttering in their ministry and featured the stories of two priests. Articles from the wire service are made made available to almost every Catholic newspaper in the U.S., as well as to those in English-speaking foreign countries. The article mentioned the Stuttering Foundation's downloadable brochure "Special Education Law and Children Who Stutter," which explains that every child in the U.S.

The movie The King’s Speech, which debuts Nov. 26, documents King George VI’s struggle to overcome his stutter and lead the U.K. through World War II. Like the King, America’s approximately 3 million stutterers can improve by doing what they may fear the most: Speak in public. Toastmasters International (www.toastmasters.org) offers a supportive, safe and therapeutic atmosphere for people of all backgrounds to practice their speaking and leadership skills.  

While the SFA’s Web site list of Famous People Who Stutter includes many high-profile names, we like to think that every person who stutters is unique in their own right.

One person who stutters who unfortunately never became famous was Rory Storm.

Q: At what age do you remember first being aware that you spoke differently?
A: I can’t remember not being aware. In school, when we used to go around the table, each reading a paragraph, I’d count ahead and try to memorize my paragraph.

B.B. King

B.B. King and John Lee Hooker have much in common. Born in Mississippi only a few years apart, both are considered among the best blues guitarists of all-time. Both King and Hooker have been inducted into The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. However, what the public may not know is that they have another thing in common: stuttering.

Editor’s Note:  The author is a person who stutters. For many years he has been a collector of “stuttering” songs – the good and the bad!

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.

Eric and Julia Roberts are a brother-and-sister act that is unique in the world of acting. They are only the third brother-and-sister act to be both nominated for Oscars for acting. Eric was nominated for Best Supporting Actor for his 1985 role in Runaway Train. His sister Julia won the Oscar for Best Actress for her role in Erin Brockovich in 2001, after receiving previous nominations in 1989 and 1990, for Steel Magnolias and Pretty Woman, respectively. Only two other brother/sister combos have done the same thing.

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

The April/May 2006 issue of the magazine Waxpoetics sheds some light on the brilliant career of the famed singer and songwriter.

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.