Our Time Announces Carly Simon As As Honoree of 8th Annual Gala, Readies Camp & More

For parents of children who stutter, finding a safe haven in which their kids can relax, be themselves and thrive is often one of the most heartbreaking challenges they face. Schools are often ill-equipped to support their children, and summer camp has never felt like a viable option. Until now. Camp Our Time can help these kids with their stutter, and Speech Language Pathologists agree: from South Carolina to Virginia to Massachusetts to Illinois to Maryland to Michigan to California to Ohio to New York, and even from as far away as Ireland, children who stutter have discovered Camp Our Time - a sleepaway camp where they get to enjoy a freewheeling getaway without the risk of being shamed or humiliated because of the way they talk. Our Time's programming, combined with speech therapy, is a winning combination that can overturn the communication hurdles presented by stuttering. Camp Our Time is fun, and it also helps.

Camp Our Time is open to young people who stutter, as well as their siblings, family, and friends (ages 8-18). The mission of Camp is twofold: to provide a fun, supportive, and beautiful environment where young people who stutter can express themselves in their own time without the fear of being ridiculed, and also to serve the important function of teaching their family members and friends who do not stutter how to better support their Brothers and Sisters. By opening this opportunity to family and friends of young people who stutter, Camp brings them closer together and fosters greater understanding. The summer program grew out of the landmark Our Time Theatre Company, a 501(c)(3) non-profit NY-based organization that uses the arts as an innovative and effective approach to improving the confidence and communication skills of youth who stutter. Our Time provides children who stutter with an environment of unconditional acceptance...where they can express themselves slowly and without risk of being derided. Kids who stutter are eloquent and brilliant when given the time to express themselves...at Our Time, they get it.

Camp Our Time takes place in Upstate New York, from August 8-15. Kids travel from all across the world to attend this one-of-a-kind Camp, and no child is turned away because of finances. Our Time staffers will even meet children at the airport if needed. In all Camp activities, the standard Our Time principles are applied: everyone has as much time as they need to speak. No one is rushed, teased, put-down, or cut-off. Campers gain the confidence they need to be successful in the upcoming school year and beyond, regardless of the way they speak. Camp Our Time is an environment where campers' voices and ideas are heard and validated. Learn more here:
http://www.ourtimetheatre.org/3_5.html

Vice President Joe Biden recently wrote a letter praising Our Time, in which he spoke of his own childhood stutter and the challenges children face without proper support systems. Praising Our Time as a "vital resource," the Vice President honored the organization with his kind words.

On April 19th, the legendary Carly Simon will be on hand as the honoree of Our Time's 8th Annual Gala Benefit. Simon, who has spoken publicly of her life-long stammer, is a long-time supporter of Our Time, and recently appeared on their CD ‘Listen' (more details below). Here's what Simon had to say about Our Time: "I only can imagine how many kids, teens and adults are going to be touched personally by Our Time. I had a very debilitating stammer for most of my life. I don't think I would have used the word ‘debilitating' to describe it, if there had been such a mother figure of empathy, like Our Time, that was publicly and privately helping me through all those years of suffering. This wonderful, young, talented and selfless man, Taro Alexander, has contributed his gifts toward seeing that having a stutter has grace and originality, and does not have to be hidden in the dark chambers of shame. Thank you so much Taro. I truly believe in Our Time and I am very proud to be an active member of this program."

Leading speech language pathologists, including Dr. Phil Schneider, assert that speech therapy is most effective when coupled with support like the kind Our Time offers. Weighing in on Our Time, Dr. Schneider stated: "As a Speech Pathologist working with youngsters who stutter for forty years, I am acutely aware that children and teens need more than speech therapy to nurture their self esteem and freedom of self expression. Taro Alexander has developed the most effective program for answering that need. Our Time stands out as a national and international model of providing life-affirming experiences for children and teens who stutter. Youngsters experience the joy of self expression through theatre arts and friendship while learning to cope effectively with the challenge of stuttering. The Our Time experience is world class in building well adjusted, communicative youngsters who may otherwise have suffered feelings of shame, frustration, isolation and deprivation. Our Time helps them to become better communicators and better people. I am so proud to be associated with Taro and Our Time."

Our Time Theatre Company is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that uses the arts as an innovative and effective approach to improving the confidence and communication skills of youth who stutter. Since 2001, Our Time has provided its young participants with a safe, nurturing community founded on unconditional acceptance where youth who have been silenced by stuttering express themselves freely, without fear of judgment or ridicule. Youth who stutter gather from a wide diversity of backgrounds to collaborate with, learn from, and support others who share their struggle to be heard in the everyday world. They are assured that what they have to say is important, and they will have as much time as needed to express their unique and valuable voices.

Stuttering is a common yet widely misunderstood speech disorder that can cause emotional distress in a staggering 5% of youth who struggle not only with their speech, but also with ridicule, bullying, discrimination, and social isolation at a crucial time in their development. Stuttering can claim a child's desire to speak, and ultimately their ability to achieve their dreams and reach their fullest potential. Kids who stutter struggle with everything from participating in class to speaking on the telephone to ordering in restaurants to dating, and some abandon their passions and interests that they perceive to be incompatible with stuttering. The psychological implications of stuttering can be extreme: some youth suffer from debilitating anxiety and depression, and sadly some even contemplate or commit suicide. To shield themselves from judgment and ridicule, kids who stutter are inclined to put up walls and socially shut down.

Our Time's programming, combined with speech therapy, is a winning combination that can overturn the communication hurdles presented by stuttering. At Our Time, youth who stutter become a part of a supportive community where they participate with their peers in groundbreaking programs that are designed for their specific needs.

For many kids who stutter and their families, treating the most pronounced symptom of stuttering - disfluency - by attending speech therapy is central to addressing the speech disorder. While speech therapy is helpful, it is important to consider that fluency is only one part of effective communication. Stuttering causes many youth to live in silence and socially shut down, and this deteriorates other communication skills that are independent of fluency such as expressing clear thoughts and stories, and engaging a communication partner through necessary eye contact, body language, and volume. Perhaps the most critical communication skill is active listening, yet many people who stutter become so self-conscious of their own speech that they lose their ability to follow others in conversation.

Effective communication is at the core of the performing arts, and Our Time is the first and only organization to use this exceptional tool to improve the communication skills of kids who stutter. Through the arts, participants learn how to communicate clearly and powerfully, allowing their speech to be heard and understood at all levels of fluency. Our Time not only helps youth who stutter to make friends and improve their communication skills - the organization also enables them to experience extraordinary success on stage and screen, as well as in their everyday lives. Once children accomplish something remarkable and great, a healthy sense of pride can take root, and that is something that can never be taken away from them. Through live performances, TV appearances, short films, music recordings, presentations, Q&A sessions and more, Our Time showcases youth who stutter and their speech disorder to society, and shines a spotlight on their vast talents and abilities. For many kids who stutter, their greatest fear is simply speaking. For many parents of kids who stutter, their greatest fear is that stuttering will hold their children back, preventing them from achieving their hopes and dreams. At Our Time, youth who stutter not only overcome their fear of speech, but gain the confidence to speak in any situation. Every Our Time performance is received with roaring applause and standing ovations, and this is evidence to the kids who stutter as well as their parents, that their lives can be filled with triumph, happiness, and fulfillment...even if they stutter.

From Associated Press to NY-1 News, from Entertainment Weekly to Back Stage Magazine, press has taken notice of the extraordinary work being done by Our Time. By building confidence in these children who stutter, and working in tandem with educators, Our Time can help improve performance in school as well as in the day-to-day lives of these kids. Founded by Taro Alexander, a person who has stuttered since the age of five, Our Time brings sensitivity and compassion to a group of youngsters who are often consumed by shame, or, worse, ignored. It is the only such organization in America.