Reeve, best known as an actor for playing Superman and later as an outspoken advocate for stem-cell research and advanced therapies for people with spinal-cord injuries, died in New York Sunday from a systemic infection caused by a bedsore. He had been paralyzed since a horseback-riding accident in 1995 that crushed his spinal cord.

"Every time I looked at (Reeve), I thought of Kent," Enzweiler says. "Especially today, I was watching TV and I saw how he survived for almost 10 years and things he was trying to do. He reminded me of Kent and what he's trying to do, and how hard he's worked."

Her son Kent Enzweiler suffered a traumatic brain injury in 2001 when he was struck by a car while running. Now 37, he lives with his parents in Cold Spring and can walk with a walker.

Peg Gutsell, co-director of the Inclusion Network, says Reeve's outspokenness kept attention focused on controversial issues such as stem-cell therapy.

"A really important piece of what he gave to people with disabilities was his courage and his determination," she says. "And he showed the world that people with disabilities have gifts and talents and that they can accomplish so much in spite of their disabilities. And he showed the world that people with disabilities have the courage to stand up for their beliefs - and I use that word deliberately."

Reeve surprised doctors and inspired the disabled when he regained nerve sensation throughout his body and was able to stand with assistance in a pool after years of intensive therapy.

Dr. Austin Nobunaga, medical director of the Drake Center's spinal cord injury rehabilitation program, called Reeve "a powerful image and advocate" for spinal-cord injury patients.

"He led by example and offered the newly injured person with a spinal-cord injury a hope for their future, not only by what he did in rehab, but also by his role in research," Nobunaga says.

The Christopher Reeve Paralysis Foundation funds paralysis research.

E-mail pofarrell@enquirer.com