Episode 54 of Babies Down, Bottles Up launches a powerful new series dedicated to the dads of the blind and visually impaired community, and there was no better guest to kick things off than Tanner Gers. A beep baseball hall-of-famer, accessibility advocate, and father, Tanner joins the crew for a raw, emotional, and motivating conversation about surviving trauma, redefining life, and what it means to show up for your child—blind or not.
From the jump, Tanner doesn’t hold back. He shares how, at just 21 years old, a devastating car accident changed everything. What followed was a grueling year of survival, including four brain surgeries and a cocktail of intense medications that left him feeling like his body was on fire. After multiple failed operations, Tanner made the life-altering decision to stop the meds and trust his body—and his faith. Through guided meditation and a relentless belief in healing, Tanner beat a brain infection that doctors believed would kill him.
The episode isn’t just about hardship, though—it’s also about triumph. The hosts and Tanner share laughs, tequila-fueled camaraderie, and plenty of “beat ball” stories. (If you’re not familiar, beep baseball is an adaptive sport for the blind.) For Tanner, discovering adaptive sports like beep ball, goalball, and track and field was a turning point. After his accident, sports helped him reconnect with his body and find joy in movement again.
He shares the moment he saw a beep ball segment on the local news in 2008 and decided to show up. What followed was more than a decade of play, eventually earning him a place in the Beep Baseball Hall of Fame in 2021. His energy, passion, and hilarious goalball battle scars prove that blind athletes don’t just adapt—they dominate.
But one of the most heart-tugging parts of the episode comes when Tanner talks about his daughter.
He didn’t plan to become a dad. But when he found out he was going to be one, he promised to raise “the best baby ever.” And that’s exactly what he’s done. From daily affirmations and bedtime prayers to baseball practice and deep talks about Disney movies, Tanner is intentional in how he shows up for his daughter—especially as a blind father.
One particularly moving moment comes when he describes what he misses most about parenting without sight: seeing his daughter’s facial expressions. The microreactions, the little smiles, the unspoken responses—he knows they’re there, but he can’t see them. That gap in connection, he admits, is one of the hardest parts of blind parenting.
Still, he refuses to let it define or limit their relationship. Tanner is committed to being a safe space, a leader, and a role model. He talks about finding the balance between being a nurturing parent and preparing his daughter for a world that won’t always be as gentle as he is. “How do I prepare her for stuff she’ll never experience under my roof?” he asks. That question underscores much of what this episode explores: the tension between protection and preparation, between love and discipline, and between fear and freedom.
The episode also highlights Tanner’s entrepreneurial and advocacy work. He co-founded Access Ability Officer, a digital accessibility consultancy that also offers fully remote training programs like the CAT Program (Certified Accessibility Testing). This initiative gives blind and disabled individuals a path to a tech career with guaranteed job placement at $25/hour for those with an open case with vocational rehabilitation. It’s not just about jobs—it’s about purpose, sustainability, and dignity.
Tanner warns that the digital accessibility space is evolving quickly due to AI, but sees new opportunities for people with disabilities to shape the future of compliance, particularly in sensitive industries like healthcare, government, and finance. His passion for accessibility, employment equity, and community-building is as fierce as his love for sports.
As the Babies Down, Bottles Up crew puts it, Tanner is a man of all trades. From athlete to entrepreneur to advocate to father, he shows that disability doesn’t limit success—it reshapes it. His story is a powerful kickoff to a month-long series spotlighting blind fathers, and it sets the tone for what’s to come: honesty, vulnerability, laughs, tears, and real talk.
This episode isn’t just for blind dads—it’s for anyone who’s ever felt knocked down by life but decided to get back up swinging. Whether it’s beating a brain infection, winning a beep ball championship, or building a safe and loving environment for your kid, Tanner’s message is simple: show up, try your best, and never stop fighting for the life you want.
Be sure to catch the full episode, subscribe to Babies Down, Bottles Up, and stay tuned all June long as we continue to celebrate the incredible stories of fatherhood in the blind community.
Quick Links:
• Learn more about the CAT Program and Access Ability Officer: www.accessabilityofficer.com• Follow Babies Down, Bottles Up on all platforms
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