Merrick Egber started working with the Els for Autism Foundation just a few months before the ribbon cutting of the Els Center of Excellence in 2014! He earned his B.A. in Communication Studies from Florida Atlantic University, with specialized classes on group facilitation, management, and organizing. Currently, he is a member of two boards, APSE and our Els for Autism Advisory Board, and is also busy working as a Communications Specialist, helping out the Marketing Department.

On the side, he is a self-published author who has written numerous works of poetry and song lyrics that are on Amazon.com and Lulu.com and managed to get a few of them recorded as actual songs, which can be found on MerrickEgber.com.

Mike DiMauro was diagnosed with autism at the age of 22. Mike graduated from Westfield State University in 2010 with a bachelor’s degree in liberal studies. Mike also has a driver’s license and has been driving since he was 17. Mike likes to spread autism awareness no matter where he goes.

Mike has spoken at the Family Cafe in Orlando, Milestones Autism Conference in Cleveland Ohio, and the Nebraska ASD Network Conference in Omaha Nebraska. Mike is a former Autism Speaks Walk committee member for the Central Florida walk. Mike is formerly an Autism Speaks Volunteer Advocacy Ambassador for the state of Florida.

When Mike is not spreading autism awareness, he likes to go camping and traveling. Mike is also an UberEats driver since January 2018 and looking at going on a cross-country road trip to do UberEats deliveries in all 50 states. Mike is also an involved member of Pioneer Valley Chapter 8 of the North American Family Campers Association based in Springfield Massachusetts. The camping club is the promoters of the Springfield RV Camping & Outdoor Show which Mike and his family volunteer at yearly. Mike also threw out the first pitch at the Tampa Bay Rays game in 2012

Gyasi Burks-Abbott, MS, is on the faculty of the LEND (Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and related Disabilities) Program at Boston Children’s Hospital and UMass Boston’s Institute for Community Inclusion. He serves on the boards, committees, and commissions of many autism and disability organizations; and he’s written for several autism and disability-related publications. Gyasi graduated from Macalester College in St. Paul, MN with a BA in English and psychology, and he has an M.S. in Library and Information Science from Simmons University in Boston. Gyasi tells the story of how he became an autism self-advocate in his autobiography/memoir titled My Mother’s Apprentice: An Autistic’s Rites of Passage

Andrew Blitman, who earned his degree in Marine Conservation Science & Policy from the University of Miami, is a local from South Florida who served on the UM-NSU Center for Autism and Related Disabilities constituency board from 2011 to 2017. He currently works as a tutor and mentor for Firewall Centers. He is the author of five books: one comprehensive poetry anthology, three illustrated poetry books written and drawn from the perspective of animals, and a memoir about his December 2012 Birthright trip to Israel. To read his works, you can visit his website: andrewblitman.com.

 

Sue Abramowski is an autistic self advocate with a passion for helping others. She earned her Bachelor’s in Social Work from Buffalo State College in 2006 and currently holds three positions working with others who have developmental disabilities and mental health diagnoses. Sue uses her own life experiences to connect to others.

In her free time, Sue is a gamer and has proclaimed herself an Android geek. She can be found tinkering with her devices and customizing them. Sue also loves animals and has had pets most of her life. Her favorite animals are rats!