Isabel Perez Rios Bravo
Isabel was born in 1994 in Mexico and lived there until she was 20. At that age, she took the big step of enrolling in college in Miami, Florida, moving to a different country without knowing anyone, which was a major challenge. Isabel studied environmental engineering, and once she qualified, she moved to Dallas, Texas, where she works as an engineer in water infrastructure design.
Her health began to decline in college, to the point that Isabel has used a wheelchair full-time for the past seven years. As a 3-year-old child, Isabel limped, leading her family to spend a lot of time visiting doctors in Mexico and the US to identify the cause. She was eventually diagnosed with a neurological disorder that causes nerve damage, affecting her elbows to hands and knees to feet, with symptoms progressing over time.
As a result of this condition, Isabel strives to maintain her health by staying active and strong, as any loss of muscle mass would be difficult to rebuild. She continues to explore new sports and physical challenges, having recently taken up hand cycling. Pushing boundaries further, Isabel is also keen on performing “Stand Up” or rather “Sitting Down” Comedy.
Isabel has always enjoyed the water, from swimming and snorkeling to now working in that environment. Growing up, her aunt was an avid scuba diver and would show photos and videos of her dive trips at family gatherings. Scuba diving was something Isabel had always wanted to do, but never thought she could until she met the Dive Pirates Foundation in 2023 at the Abilities Expo in Dallas. There, she learned that it was possible. Isabel later traveled to Cayman Brac in 2025, after she completed her scuba training and became certified alongside her good friend Trevor. She trained with Instructor Bjorn Loftis of bjornloftisdiving.com.
This year has been full of new adventures for Isabel as she continues to challenge herself. She has tried skiing, followed by skydiving and scuba diving. Most notably, Isabel became the first Mexican woman to summit Mount Kilimanjaro, the tallest free-standing mountain in the world, on wheels.
