Inspiration: Letter from Sen. Joe Biden

My Sen. Joe Biden story begins with a field trip to DC in 1994. I was in 8th grade at Talley Junior High at the time. During the question and answer session of Sen. Biden's presentation, I raised my hand and asked a question. I cannot remember what question I asked but I do remember stuttering a little bit. I have struggled with a speech impediment all of my life but something compelled me to ask a question that day. After answering my question and few others, Biden pulled me aside and asked for my name. Sen. Biden then told me that he used to stutter as a kid but never let it interfere with his life goals. In fact, Sen Biden added that he would purposely seek public speaking opportunities (such as acting in plays) to force himself to speak in public. About a week later, I received a letter from Sen. Biden urging me to remember our conversation about stuttering and being respectful to others. I really took Sen. Biden's words to heart the following year when I entered The Tatnall School as a freshman and ran for class president. I won the election and basically served as class president all through high school and college (Ursinus College), giving countless speeches and a few sermons (M.Div from Harvard Divinity School) along the way. From that day forward, I cast away my worries about stuttering and basically crafted my entire adult life around public speaking. Today, I type this email as a prosecutor in Delaware.

-As quoted in The News Journal August 29, 2008.