Jane Fraser, president of The Stuttering Foundation, issued the following reaction to last night’s “Golden Globe Awards”:
Memphis, TN – “A tsunami called The King’s Speech has turned our world upside down,” said Jane Fraser, president of The Stuttering Foundation. “This movie has done in one fell swoop what we’ve been working on for 64 years – raising awareness of the complexities of stuttering and the help that is available to those in need.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-aS4hoOSlzo[/youtube]
The King’s Speech, with its seven Golden Globe nominations and tonight’s much-deserved “Best Actor in a Motion Picture” award for Colin Firth, is more than entertainment to people who stutter. We have heard universal praise for both the movie and the actors’ performances from the stuttering community across the world. People who stutter have a movie and a hero they can call their own. We congratulate the director, producers, writers and actors for their work, and their humanity in helping millions of people who stutter with understanding and hope.”
About 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 Association for Research into Stammering in Childhood in London.
About the Foundation
Malcolm Fraser felt the same dread of speaking in public that King George VI experienced in the 1940s. Inspired by the plight of “Bertie,” Fraser, a successful businessman and stutterer, went on to establish and endow the 64-year-old nonprofit Foundation in 1947. The organization Fraser founded became today’s Stuttering Foundation of America. Its goal was to provide the best and most up-to-date information and help available for the prevention of stuttering in young children and the most effective treatment available for teenagers and adults.
More than 60 years later, the Stuttering Foundation continues to pursue these same goals, although the tools to accomplish them are more varied and widespread. As it did when Malcolm Fraser turned his dream into reality, the Foundation dedicates itself to the contemporary concerns of those who stutter.
The Stuttering Foundation of America is a tax-exempt organization under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and is classified as a private operating foundation as defined in section 4942(j)(3). Charitable contributions and bequests to the Foundation are tax deductible, subject to limitations under the Code. Contributions can also be made through the Combined Federal Campaign/United Way.
The Foundation provides a toll-free helpline, 800-992-9392, and free online resources on its Web site, 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. Please visit us at www.stutteringhelp.org.
The SFA noted in the article does offer great materials for people who stutter but the National Stuttering Association (NSA) is the only organization that offers many opportunities for people who stutter to meet other people who stutter face to face through support groups across the country and annual conferences in which over 600 people who stutter attend. They include such keynote speakers as VP Joe Biden, Arthur Blank (Owner, Atlanta Falcons), Adrian Peterson (Chicago Bears), Annie Glenn, John Melendez and John Stossel. The NSA also offers a free on-line support groups where people who stutter (as well as parents of children who stutter, professionals, family of people who stutter) can join to talk to other people who stutter across the world for support with their stuttering. Check it out! https://www.z2systems.com/np/clients/nsa/news.jsp?news=77
To learn more about the NSA, pls contact them at: http://www.westutter.org, info@westutter.org or 1-800-937-8888
The Stuttering Foundation of America was there to help some of my relatives years ago and are still there doing a great job. The King’s Speech is an additional help to make life easier for those who stutter just by making it known that even kings stutter.