A year ago he could barely utter a word and relied on others to push his wheelchair.

        Today Kent Enzweiler's speech has improved, and he uses his feet to propel his chair down the halls of Drake Center. But the most noticeable change might be in his eyes. They're smiling now, and that is no small thing.

Enzweiler

        Chances are he'll be smiling, too, on Sept. 14 when runners step off the starting line for the Enzweiler Multi-Miler, a 5-kilometer race and walk hosted by Drake Center. The race is named for Kent, one of Cincinnati's top marathon runners and duathletes (running and biking) until he was struck by a minivan during a training run on March 11, 2001.

        He suffered a traumatic brain injury and has spent the past 17 months at Drake Center, a rehabilitation and long-term care hospital in Hartwell.

        In January, Tempo told of his struggle to recover, a struggle shared by his parents and three sisters, one of whom, Mary Enzweiler, traveled to the Boston Marathon each year with Kent.

        The story recounted how Kent arrived at Drake in a “persistent vegetative state,” unable to talk or swallow; how, for months, family members had no way of knowing whether he recognized them, and how sometimes at the end of the day, after telling her brother goodbye, Mary Enzweiler got in her car and cried all the way home.

        But through the persistent efforts of Drake staff and Kent's family and friends, he began to make progress. Slowly, he began to eat. About five months after entering Drake, he began to speak. And then, he put a few words together.

        The new year began with Kent and Mary back at a race. He watched from his wheelchair as she ran the Frostbite 5 in Fort Thomas.

        Since then, he has continued to make slow, but noticeable, progress.

        On a recent weekday evening, he is sitting in a day room at Drake. Mary is describing two elective surgeries he underwent to remove excess bone growth. The first surgery, on an elbow, was in January.

        “Hurt like the devil,” Kent says.

        But after the pain subsided, his spirits soared and have remained high, Mary says. And now that one arm is no longer frozen against his body, he's better able to use a special walker in therapy.

        “Pretty handy to have,” Kent says of that second arm.

        In July, he had surgery to remove calcification from his right leg, which allows him to extend it better than before. “Whether that will enable him to walk is yet to be seen,” Mary says. “Quite possibly not.”

        Still, there is much to be thankful for. He feeds himself without difficulty. And when Mary asks him to recall a song they sang the other day, he blurts out:

        “Roy Orbison. Pretty woman. Walking down the street. Pretty woman. Like I'd like to meet.”

        Mary laughs. “Oh, we were jammin'.”

        Kent attended the Heart Mini-Marathon in March, and the Flying Pig Marathon in May. At the Pig, good friend John Sence, a member of the winning relay team, presented Kent with his finisher's medal.

        At 9 a.m. on Sept. 14, Kent and his family will attend another race, the Enzweiler Multi-Miler. Race proceeds will benefit Kent and others through the Friends of Drake Foundation, which purchases equipment and other items to improve patients' quality of life.

        At Drake, Kent has become a celebrity of sorts, well-liked by everyone. Mary Enzweiler says the hospital staff deserves credit for resurrecting her brother from the scrap heap. Kent, of course, had a role in that, too. She's proud of his continued determination.

        And she doesn't cry on her drive home anymore.

        Register on-line for the Enzweiler Multi-Miler at www.sprunning.com. Or for information about the run/walk, call (513) 336-9242. Race-day registration begins at 7:30 a.m. Sept. 14 and the race is at 9 at Drake Center, 151 W. Galbraith Road. The race kicks off Drake's Heritage Day, which includes free health screenings, entertainment and kids' activities.

Tristate catches the Maze Craze
Mazes bring out competitive edge
Where to find a cornfield maze
Former top runner sustains his hopes
The Insatiable Shopper
9-11 images can trigger post-traumatic stress disorder
Former model's creations reshaped jewelry world
On the Fridge
Get to it