
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: MONDAY, July 12, 1993                   TAG: 9307120082
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: C3   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: ARLINGTON                                LENGTH: Medium

STUTTERERS CELEBRATE `FREEDOM OF SPEECH'

Mary Weadon isn't assertive when she makes small talk at dinner parties and she's often frustrated when people rush her or try to complete her sentences.

But for someone whose life has been complicated by stuttering, Weadon, 43, a Fairfax County schoolteacher, has kept a sense of humor.

The license plate on her Honda Accord reads "MMMMARY," and the message on her telephone answering machine says: "Answering machines are not made for stutterers. Leave a message if you want."

"Even though I'm very open about it, and I've psychologically accepted it, I still try to find ways to avoid it," she said of the problem.

But there was no avoiding the issue in Arlington on Saturday as Weadon and about 400 others gathered for the 10th annual conference of the National Stuttering Project, a nonprofit group that offers support and education to people who stutter and those who know and work with them.

The conference's theme was "Celebrate Freedom of Speech," and participants went to workshops to discuss everything from increasing their self-confidence and language fluency to improving relations with family members, friends and employers.

They bought books, tapes and souvenirs, including blue T-shirts that read, "I'll Say It My Way," and red buttons that said, "Stutterers Do It With SSStyle."

But mostly, they shared common experiences and encouraged one another.

"Coming here and being reminded they're not alone gives them a sense of healing," said John Ahlbach, 41, executive director of the National Stuttering Project and a part-time English teacher in San Francisco.

"The fear goes away," he said. "You can't do anything about it unless you acknowledge the problem is there."

About one in every 100 adults and one in 25 children stutter, according to conference organizers. Neurological problems are believed to be responsible, organizers said, and stuttering is not a nervous or personality disorder.

Donna Campbell, 43, of Richmond, inspired participants with her stories about life as a stand-up comedian. Her jokes are about being single and everyday experiences, and she doesn't dwell on stuttering in the act.

"If I came to a place where I was struggling with my speech, I would do something comical about stuttering to let people know that I do stutter," she said. "I find it helps to be able to laugh about it. But it's also something I take really seriously."

by CNB