Graduate Joins "Acro-bats" Pair
Andrews in the News
| Posted on May 20, 2026
Others might see someone with disabilities when they learn that Ray McAllister has been blind for most of his life and has now been diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome, but McAllister doesn’t see it that way.
The Berrien Center resident likes to think instead of his abilities and striving to find ways he can do more.
McAllister’s latest effort—as he describes it—to “boldly go where no blind man has gone before” involves learning acrobatic skills and performing before area students the last two years.
He and his gymnastics partner, Daseph Edwards, call themselves “Acro-bats” in that they’re both acrobats and because as McAllister puts it, he’s “blind as a bat.”
“We’re looking at teaching about disabilities with acrobatics,” McAllister said. “We want to illustrate being disabled doesn’t mean you can’t do things. Being disabled is a relative term. We want to show that people can do a number of things when they’re disabled, but they may need to be creative. We want to show what we can do so others can build on it.”
For his part, Edwards said this experience has inspired him to become a special education teacher and to help students with special needs and particularly those who are autistic. A native of New York City, Edwards is 28 years old and an Andrews graduate who works as a teacher for Berrien RESA.
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