On October 17, 2023, Manistee County in Michigan commemorated the mentorship of their native sons Professor Donald Crouch and James Earl Jones by unveiling bronze statues of the two outside of Kaleva Norman Dickson Schools in Brethren, which is right across from the former Brethren High School. Jones was not able to attend himself, but one of his first cousins, Terry Connolly, spoke on his behalf and related how Jones was a mentor to him. Sid Halley, a great- grandson of Professor Crouch, spoke and said, “Mentoring is a small way for each of us to make a big difference for someone else. If my great-grandfather hadn’t taken the time to work with Mr. Jones… think of things that would be different for us. The plains of Africa would have a different voice, baseball in a homemade field in Iowa would sound different and Luke may not know who his father is.”
detail how Jones amazingly found fluency in the recitation of that poem and thus embarked on his high school track of the debate team and acting, the path that would ultimately lead him to his brilliant career as an actor.
In an interview for the book, Kari Lavelle said, “As a speech pathologist, I frequently shared the story of James Earl Jones with my young clients for many years before I put pen to paper (or rather fingers to the keyboard). It can really be powerful to share the stories of celebrities who stuttered with these kids – a way to show that their stutter won’t hold them back from their dreams. The more I learned about James Earl Jones, the more that I knew his story had to be shared with young readers.”
In a 1993 PBS interview, Jones addressed the famous instance in his high school class in which he recited the poem fluently, “Like song poetry is rhythmic and most stutterers don’t stutter when they sing. It’s [the stuttering] always there… it’s there right now…stutterers seem like they are ponderous and deep thinkers, we’re not. We’re looking for the word we can say without tripping on it.”
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The event was more than just celebrating a local celebrity as it was an event to celebrate mentorship. The public was asked to nominate local mentors, of which more than 100 names are listed on a plaque next to the statues.
Upon the death of James Earl Jones, the Stuttering Foundation released a glowing portrait of his accomplished life on social media with the statement, “He was a faithful friend, for many decades, to the Stuttering Foundation, and a true advocate for the stuttering community.”
"Because he is a stutterer, he shapes written language uniquely and works with even more care than most writers do. His hands linger over
every sentence. His eyes and ears are attuned to the resonance of words. And his years of silence have forged a sensitive listener and observer."
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