Check Out Miracle Pelayo’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Miracle Pelayo

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
My name is Miracle Pelayo and this is my story. Born 23 weeks early weighing just 1 lbs 12 oz and then went to 14 oz. I had a 5% of survival and if I did survive, the doctors said I would be mentally delayed, blind, deaf and deformed but because of the prayers and faith of my parents, I am now 31 years old. When I was 8 months old, I was diagnosed with Spastic Depligia Cerebral Palsy. That doesn’t stop me from
fulfilling my dreams of being an actor, model and fashion creator. I am nothing what the doctor told my parents. I am from Los Angeles, CA.

My biggest dream come true was becoming the voice of the first American Girl Doll with Cerebral Palsy in AG Doll HIstory named Lily in the YouTube Series : AMERICAN GIRL DOLL THE TRAVEL TWINS! I have been featured on TV Shows like Nickelodeon’s Bella and The Bulldogs, Modeled with Olivia Culpo and so much more. As a Fashion Content Creator, it’s my mission to make Cerebral Palsy beautiful one outfit at a time to show young girls in wheelchairs or walkers that they can feel confident.

MY” WHY”

I have always dreamed of being a role model for young girls in wheelchairs to show them they can be anything they want to be in this world. That’s why I started being in the industry because I wanted to show that young girls in wheelchairs who have CP can be anything that they put their minds to, I want them to believe in themselves like I believe in them. I want to be the spark that helps them chase after their dreams every day.

I do what I do to give people a purpose with their disability to believe in themselves in all they do. My dream is to be a voice for others with disabilities to believe in themselves and to give their parents hope in believing for a miracle. I believe God gave me CP to give people hope that anyone with any disability can be anything they want to be in this world.

What does having Cerebral Palsy mean to me? It means that I am strong, and I am an unstoppable warrior. It means I am here to be a light for others and I am here to help young girls who have a disability find their magic sparkle just by being themselves.

Being a role model means being a LIGHT. A VOICE. The reason why you help someone believe in themselves and that’s the person I want to be when I’m on set or making fashion content. I think of “How is this going to make an impact, who can I lift up today”

My Disability doesn’t limit me. I believe Cerebral Palsy is a gift to show girls that they can be dreamers and make a change in this world. It takes one person to start a spark and I wanted to be that person young girls to look up to. Never Give up, Never Stop Dreaming, Use your gifts to make someone smile. Every project I have done and will continue to do in my career, it’s for my beauties in wheelchairs who need someone they can lean on. You are strong. You are magical, You are loved, You are a masterpiece. That’s why I’m here. To help you see that. A VOICE.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
My Challenges have included overcoming so much with my disability including 14 surgical procedures before age 14. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve still had to work through having a weak immune system at time from a premauture birth but through my obstacles I’ve faced. God has always been by my side and has chosen me to go through those rough times to get to where I am right now. So even on the hard times, I’m grateful to God I have Cerebral Palsy because it showed me that I need to be a role model for others.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I have been acting for over 10 years. I fell in love with theater at 14 after my parents took me to go see the miracle worker the play on my 12th birthday. What started the spark in me to take on acting and model in my wheelchair was I noticed the actress playing Helen Keller was able bodied playing a disabled character. I turned to my dad that night and said I wanted to change that. I was apart of a Boys and Girls wheelchair club called Winners on Wheels in Long Beach, CA and a performance group that was all about spreading happiness through performing put on a show for us. The group was called Kids On Stage For a Better World and I became very good friends with Michaela Jill Murphy (The Voice of Toph from Avtar the last air bender) and her mom talked to my Dad after a show because I wanted to audition for CC KIDS. I auditioned in 2007 and was apart of the group for 3 years and performed 30 shows as the only disabled member in the group. Our director was Grounded for Life’s Lynsey Bartilson.

I am known for Nickelodeon’s Bella and The Bulldogs as Stacy in Season 2. I have also worked with Alan Tudyk in a web series “ Con Man and have been featured in commercials for Tommy Hilfiger Adaptive.

The proudest moment in my career was when I made my voice over debut as Lily, the First American Girl Doll who has Cerebral Palsy in American Girl Doll History. Voicing her changed my life and I have always dreamed of being apart of something where disability representation is showcased in Voice Over.

What I love about the journey I’m on is that I can show people that your disability doesn’t stop you from living your dreams. My whole life I wanted to be a voice to show people with disabilities that they can be anything they want to be.

Social media also became a huge part of my career when I started becoming a Fashion Content Creator. I began “ Making Cerebral Palsy Beautiful” because I wanted to show young girls with their disabilities that they can be fashionistas in their own just like any fashionista out there. In 2020, I posted a reel with the song, “ Pretty Girls walk like this” in my Walker wearing a guess sweatshirt and it hit 12.7k views. To me. What’s the most important thing about using my platform is the inspiration I want to give to someone with a disability or even their parents to show them, they can do it too.

How do you define success?
Sucesss to me means that God gives all talents for His Glory and How he wants to use us through that gift. To me success comes from just by being yourself and the love you show others by being their cheerleaders. Success to me is not about being famous for being on TV show but for being the reason someone else wants to go after their dreams.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://MiraclePelayo.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/miraclepelayoofficial/reels/
• Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/MiraclePelayo/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/miraclepelayo20
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@miraclepelayo_

Image Credits
LEAH HUEBNER PHOTOGRAPHY

https://www.huebnerheadshots.com/about

MADDY ULLMAN

https://www.themaddyullman.com/