$215,000 raised
$215,000 total gift
200+ sessions
We have funded over 200+ sessions since September 2022
350+ donations
Over 350 donations and counting
3% expenses
97% of the funds raised goes directly to helping individuals
Bjorn This Way Impact Award
We are proud to recognize our annual recipient(s) of the Bjorn This Way Impact Award. The Impact Award honors individual(s) who have contributed significantly to clinical care and through their efforts are making a substantial impact on the lives of those with speech-language pathology needs.
Previous Impact Award Recipients
Avery Dixon is a saxophone extraordinaire, America’s Got Talent Finalist, America’s Got Talent All-Star finalist, and an advocate against bullying. He was born prematurely, leading to medical conditions including a Posterior Keyhole Aperture (hole in his vocal cord), which affects his vocal cords and makes his voice raspy. Despite his medical complications, he beats all odds by playing the saxophone! Avery is the founder of “GraceNotes & Totes (https://www.averydixongracenotes.com/),” a charity that provides NICU families of preemie babies with essential supplies such as preemie diapers, wipes, clothes, and blankets to Emory Decatur Hospital.
Edie R. Hapner, PhD, CCC-SLP, ASHA Fellow is professor of otolaryngology-head and neck surgery, co-director of the UAB Voice Center, and director of speech and hearing at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Among her honors, Dr. Hapner was named the George W. Barber Jr., Foundation Endowed Professor in 2021, ASHA Fellow in 2019, Associate Fellow of the American Laryngological Association, and Distinguished Fellow of the National Academies of Practice. Dr. Hapner served on the ASHA Board of Directors from 2014 to 2016, was the ASHA Convention co-chair in 2020 and 2022, and served on the Coordinating Committee of Special Interest Group 3, Voice and Voice Disorders from 2006 to 2013. Dr. Hapner has authored more than 50 peer-reviewed articles and six book chapters on voice and voice disorders, and she is the co-editor of Voice Therapy: Clinical Case Studies. She is the co-developer of Phonation Resistance Training Exercises (PhoRTE®), a systematic program of respiratory and phonatory overload to treat the aging voice.