Miss Wheelchair New York is showing the world she won't let anything stop her from moving forward with her life.

News 12 visited Andrea Dalzell at her parents' home in Flatlands after she won the Miss Wheelchair New York Pageant earlier this month.

The pageant recognizes the accomplishments of women in wheelchairs.

"I think I have a very big personality, so it kind of overtakes the chair and I'm grateful for that, but other people don't have that voice and that's where I'm just like all right, I'll be that voice for you," she says.

Dalzell was diagnosed with Transverse Myelitis at 5 years old. The neurological disorder affects the spinal cord and she was told a few years later that she would be bound to a wheelchair for life.

Dalzell hopes the attention she is receiving can inspire local lawmakers to get funding to create more accessible housing.

She is currently preparing for the Miss Wheelchair America Pageant, which is scheduled for next year in Iowa.