Annemarie Whitesel is the parent of two adult children. Her daughter is a person who stutters.  After attending her first NSA conference in 2013, and experiencing its life changing effects on her family, she returned home to form the first NSA Family Chapter in Charlotte, NC and began organizing local NSA events for the stuttering community in both North and South Carolina.

Annemarie previously served on the NSA Board of Directors as Family Programs Co-Chair from 2016 to 2020.  While expanding the scope of NSA Family Chapters, she introduced NSA 5k fundraising events across the country to promote awareness and community involvement for the National Stuttering Association and created the NSA Generations mentoring program. She was awarded the NSA Parent of the Year award in 2021.

Her continued passion for reaching out and supporting other parents, kids/teens who stutter and their family members, has led Annemarie to return and serve on the NSA Board of Directors.