Empowering
Voices Through Spelling and Typing

Building Community, Friendship, and Advocacy for Non-Speaking Individuals

  • Tucson Spellers Night Out W/Live Music

    Join Tucson Spellers for our June event—an evening of outdoor live music with Don Armstrong & the Whiskeypalians on Wednesday, June 25 from 6:30–9:00 PM! Enjoy original folk and Americana music in a unique historic venue turned restaurant and music courtyard. With shaded seating, cooling misters, and a gourmet menu of food and drinks, it's the perfect way to beat the heat and connect with our amazing community. Full details and RSVP info will be shared in our Tucson Spellers WhatsApp community chat—join us there to stay in the loop!

  • New Community Chat

    We’re excited to announce the launch of the Tucson Spellers WhatsApp Community Chat—a new space to help our community stay connected, share last-minute meetups, future plans, and celebrate the amazing things our Spellers voice each day. We’ve also created a dedicated Hiking Club group within the same chat to make it easy for hikers and support teams to coordinate rides, routes, and responses. These chats are all about connection, support, and celebration. Want to join? Click here: https://chat.whatsapp.com/HJjxmY9nz1uLmmBjaWwQbO. Let’s keep building this beautiful, inclusive community—one message at a time.

  • Sound Healing

    Our recent sound healing gathering with Elizabeth from Aligned Healing at Sanctuary Cove was a profoundly peaceful and restorative experience. Elizabeth’s calm, grounded energy created a space where our spellers could truly thrive, leading to moments of deep regulation and connection. As one participant shared, “Moving through my nervous system, I feel grounded. I feel more centered in my soul.” Another simply said, “This is awesome! I feel so relaxed.” Being in community with other spellers always brings something special, and this event reminded us of the power of shared calm in a supportive, sensory-rich environment.

  • Bridging Voices Together

    Another amazing day for the Speller community! We had a wonderful time connecting with friends, showing up for our community, and engaging in powerful outreach at the Southern Arizona Autism Society’s All In It for Autism Day. Thank you to all the Spellers, families, and support teams who made the event such a success, and a special shout-out to the Spellers who advocated for themselves at our Tucson Spellers table. Huge thanks to the Nagy/Tax family for helping lead the walking portion of our Bridging Voices Together team and to Inclusive Academy for being the other phenomenal half of this collaboration.

  • Tucson Roadrunners Game

    A huge thank you to everyone who joined us for an evening full of energy, laughter, and community at the Tucson Roadrunners game. We were especially proud to share the Tucson Spellers mission on a broader stage, and even more proud to have some of our very own Spellers seated at our table—advocating for themselves and for Spellers everywhere, both current and future. Their presence and voices made the night all the more meaningful.

What is Apraxia?

Apraxia is a neurological condition that affects a person’s ability to coordinate and carry out purposeful movements, even though there is no muscle weakness or physical injury. It’s a disconnect between the brain and the body that makes it difficult to turn intention into action.

In autistic individuals, this can show up as difficulty starting or coordinating speech, gestures, or body movements—even when they know exactly what they want to do or say.

In autistic bodies, apraxia might look like: •Delayed or no speech, despite clear understanding. • Difficulty initiating movement (e.g., reaching, pointing, walking). • Movements that are inconsistent—sometimes they can do something, other times they can’t. • Trouble coordinating facial expressions or gestures. • A body that doesn’t always follow commands, even with strong intention

It’s important to understand that apraxia is not a lack of intelligence or motivation—it’s a disconnect between intention and physical execution. Many nonspeaking autistic individuals with apraxia can understand everything around them but struggle to show it through speech or movement.

a little about us…

Tucson Spellers is a nonprofit dedicated to empowering non-speaking individuals by supporting their communication needs, creating social opportunities, and providing funding for training, events, and essential resources.

Check out our upcoming events

Spellers of all spelling methods are welcome.

Are you new to spelling?

Explore our tools and guides to get started.

Speller Voices

Discover powerful stories, insights, and experiences directly from nonspeaking spellers. Our blog is a platform where spellers of all modalities can share their journeys, challenges, and triumphs in their OWN words.