Disabled Miami Student Needs Votes To Fulfill College Dreams

MIAMI (CBS4) - Glenneisha Darkins used to live for basketball. She played all throughout high school at Miami Killian.

Life has changed dramatically since those days of shooting hoops.

Now, she relies on caregivers and technology to breathe, to get out of bed and do basic tasks.

"Takes a lot of time. To get me dressed takes 30 to 45 minutes," said Glenneisha.

Glenneisha was paralyzed in a rollover crash around Thanksgiving of 2010 on her way back to Miami from Florida A & M. She was not driving.

"I can move my shoulders now, but before I couldn't move."

The crash made her a quadriplegic and dependent on a ventilator, but it could not take away her smile or her spirit. After months of recovery and rehab, Glenneisha enrolled at FIU.

But she's forced to rely on a public van service to get to class and other activities- it's a challenge for her family.

"It's hard to go places."

"3 days to 24 hours before to make reservations for her to be picked up," said Glenneisha's mother Angelic Harris.

That's why Glenneisha entered this national online contest- for Mobility Awareness Month. The site is giving away wheelchair accessible vans to the three top vote-getters.

"It would mean a lot because we're going through a lot financially, emotionally."

Her mother agrees and has faith they can win.

"She'll be able to get out and go to all the places that she once was able to visit."

Whether she wins or not, Glenneisha hopes her story will inspire others to keep going, even after tragedy.

"For those that are listening, if you are in my situation life is not over."

To vote for Glenneisha click this link:
http://www.nmeda.com/mobility-awareness-month/local-hero-contest
Type in her last name- Darkins and select Florida.
Click on her picture and follow the instructions.

You can vote every day.