A couple of us enjoyed a beautiful afternoon at the Wilsonville Festival Arts while listening to our group member, Christopher Shotola-Hardt's progressive folk band, Bug Toast. Follow them on Facebook: ​https://www.facebook.com/Bug-Toast-110927626403/ 

Tonight 18 of us gathered at McMenamins for our monthly meeting while having dinner and drinks together. Some of us shared an item, picture, or story of significance in regards to our stuttering journeys. One common theme came out of all of it, and that was gratitude. Whether it was for their stutter, a person, or part of the journey, In some shape or form, gratitude was a part of every person's story. Laughter was also a common theme of the night... so much laughter. 

Many Portland Chapter NSA members donated to and/or attended the 3rd annual fundraiser for Camp More, an overnight summer camp for kids and teens who stutter. The evenings was filled with great food, friends, drinks, auction items, inspirational speeches, community, and live music thanks to our very own member, Christopher Shotola-Hardt. Portland is an exciting place to be for kids, teens, and adults who stutter. 

This evening, we read a story regarding one of our soon-to-be new members, personal story/reflection and then discussed our own stuttering journeys. Here is his story: www.cornwalllive.com/news/cornwall-news/inspirational-cornishman-talks-coming-terms-1347502

Wow. Just wow. 32 of us showed up on Friday night for our Winter Social, and it was amazing. It was so great to see such a mix of people. In attendance were a bunch of regulars, group members that haven't been able to make it to our meetings in quite a while, spouses and partners, and even a few brand new faces. Good food, good drinks, even better company. Thank you to everyone who came out to Brix Tavern for a great night of community and socializing!

​We ended the year together with a reflective meeting. Together, the 11 of us, shared our “year in review” regarding our stuttering and the use of strategies that have benefitted or challenged us in some way. Several folks shared that in 2017 they have begun to enjoy their stutter - to not be frightened or fearful of it - but to just let the stutter happen. This was dovetailed with motivating stories about being more bold in speaking publicly, advertising stuttering to family members and friends, and moving stuttering down the ladder of self-identity. A challenging strategy of "telling little lies” to avoid stuttering was also shared. This story led to a discussion about the use of covert strategies to avoid stuttering and the reflection that it takes so much energy to NOT stutter. We concluded the meeting discussing our individual focuses for 2018 regarding our stuttering. In the words of our chapter members “enjoy your stutter” and know that you are not alone.

We will kick off 2018 with a social gathering at Brix Tavern on January 19th. We look forward to seeing you in the new year! 

Wow! What an incredible turnout. 20 of us showed up this evening to discuss the following:
"What I wish this person knew about stuttering." The basis of this topic was inspired by International Stuttering Awareness Day (ISAD) which occurred on October 22nd (as it does every year). 

Members were asked to consider:

• Think of one person you regularly come into contact with (e.g., the Starbucks barista, a coworker, a family member, a friend) OR someone you might come into contact with (e.g., a Starbucks barista, an overly chatty uber driver, a waiter at a restaurant). 
• When you have your person (or potential person) in mind, think of what you wish or future wish, this person knew about stuttering or yourself on your stuttering journey.

Situation examples:
Regular Contact Person- Recently, an anonymous acquaintance, and person who stutters, shared with me that they really don't like it when their mother speaks for them whenever they are out together. They have never had the heart to tell her in fear of making her feel bad, since she does have good intentions.  

Potential Contact Person- Some of you may remember Natalie Vanderpol (now Griffin) from the group-Natalie is a person who stutters (and Speech Language Pathologist). She shared with me (and granted me permission to share with you) a story about her experience with a flight attendant from just a couple of weeks ago. The flight attendant was taking the usual beverage orders in the aisle from row to row, as they always do. Natalie wanted to order a ginger ale, but when it came to being her turn, she had a block and could not get the word out fast enough for this flight attendant. The flight attendant decided just to move on and take the next person's order.

For both of these examples, there are things that could be said and done, although very difficult to do, right? One is definitely more sensitive than the other, but they are equally important for different reasons. We will be explored reasons and possible solutions/responses to situations while writing cards with the sentiment or statement we "wished that person knew about stuttering." After writing the thoughtful notes, members engaged their creative side by designing a cover to their card which somehow represented themselves as a person who stutters, or their stuttering journey as a whole. What the member does with their card is completely up to them. Maybe the actually give the card to the person they had in mind; maybe they don't; maybe they keep it in their car for "just in case." Whatever ends up being done with their card, the message was put out into the universe and a release of thoughts was employed. That in and of itself, is power.