Dwayne Ballen

Autism Light #360 is Dwayne Ballen. 

Dwayne Ballen is an autism father from Durham, North Carolina. He is the owner of Ballen Media and a journalist and sports announcer.  Dwayne Ballen wrote the book "Journey with Julian" about his lessons of raising a son with autism. Dwane Ballen is an Autism Light for how he spreads autism awareness through both his memoirs as an autism father and as he speaks to groups about autism.

Dwayne Ballen's book "Journey with Julian" is an account of a father observing the world through the eyes of his son growing up with autism. Dwayne Ballen said, "I watched the world through Julian's eyes, and it was a marvel. And at times, it was a heartache (WRAL.com, Father's Memoir Offers Lesson on Raising Son with Autism)."

Dwayne Ballen expresses how he feels as an autism father in this way, "People with special needs have much to offer us. I hope I'm a better person for having Julian. I hope I'm a better father. But one thing is certain, my life is better for having been Julian's father (Franklin Porter Graham Child Development Institute, April 23, 2014)."

Journey with Julian:  Dwayne Ballen's book "Journey with Julian" was released in April, 2013. You can read posts that eventually were put into the book at Dwayne Ballen's blog at journeywithjulian.com and order the book through Amazon. This is the video where Dwayne Ballen explains why he wrote his book "Journey with Julian."


Sports Announcer:  Garden District Book Shop in their promotion of "Journey with Julian" says, "Dwayne Ballen is a television journalist whose broadcast résumé includes CBS Sports, the ESPN networks, the Golf Channel, Fox Sports, USA Network and TNT's NBA Playoffs coverage. He has been a contributor to NPR and the Fox News Channel (Garden District Book Shop, May 17, 2013)."

More Information: The following articles highlight some of the ways in which Dwayne Ballen spreads autism awareness.

• Former Triangle sports anchor shares family's journey with autism | Health & Wellness | NewsObserver.com
• Father's memoir offers lessons on raising son with autism :: WRAL.com
• TV Journalist Dwayne Ballen to Deliver Keynote at the Inclusion Institute | FPG Child Development Institute

Here is a video of Dwayne Ballen being the color commentator for a past college basketball game.


Social Media: To learn more about Dwayne Ballen view his LinkedIn page.

Special thanks to Dwayne Ballen for raising autism awareness through giving the world his memoirs in "Journey with Julian". The perspective that Dwayne Ballen brings as an autism father is a gift to the autism community. We wish Dwayne and Julian all the best in the future.

Autism Light honors diverse heroes to the world of autism.