Mum's the Word

Jim McColl is an accomplished physicist who taught at Yale University, Berkeley, and who worked for many years at GTE labs. He holds numerous patents. Living with aphasia since his stroke, he has found eloquent modes of communication through his love of both painting and music. His banner design represents his past career in physics, and his beloved recorder.

Pat Price was formerly in medical advertising. His banner design incorporates her avid passion for button collecting and her equally passionate love of words. Every week, despite her aphasia, she tackles the London Times crossword puzzle.

Joe Gropper was a well known fine print and drawing dealer for many years. He was also an actor, and an extremely accomplished painter. His banner design, which incorporates shapes and motifs from his own award winning painting, evokes the tricks that the mind can play during aphasia.

Dorothy Moulla is a former fashion designer who traveled to India, Mexico, and many other places to supervise fabrication of her designs, that often incorporated local patterns, colors and fabrics. Her banner design reflects her love of sewing and her love of hats. She includes her drawings, and the red color of the Albanian flag, her parents' country of origin.

Jim Richardson was a witty, theatrical, and effective teacher of English, ethics, philosophy, and math at the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy. His banner design suggests his attitude toward his career, the love of performance he has passed on to his daughter, and the keen sense of frustration that he experiences daily in living with aphasia.

Max Steinmann came to America to work with punch cards, and laterbougth and sold mainframe computers. He went on to hae a very successful career in business. His banner design juxtaposes the Swiss flag and a computer circuit board from the Fifties against a text which expresses simply and vividly his condition of aphasia.

John Roberts started driving a tractor as a young boy. Through his subsequent careers, including bank manager and realtor, he never lost his love of wheels and motion. Since his stroke, he has learned how to “drive” a jigsaw with one hand, fashioning beautiful, intricate wooden forms. His banner design expresses his interests, his frustration and his sense of loss engendered by aphasia.

Bea Ozeran was an accomplished and dedicated elementary school teacher in the Chicago public school system. When her students became restless, she would play the piano. Her banner design reflects her career as a teacher, as well as the difficulty she has trying to find words and thoughts because of her current aphasia.

Jan Curtis is a nationally acclaimed opera singer who has performed in “Rigoletto,” “Daughter of the Regiment,” “Susanna,” and “Candide,” among other roles. Her banner design incorporates drawings of herself as the witch in “Hansel and Gretel” and, after the stroke, as a figure split in half