Eudora senior Brody Wenger adapts after sudden spinal cord illness

At a lunch stop on the way to Omaha for a summer basketball camp at Creighton, Brody Wenger suddenly could not feel his legs. He did not spend his senior year at Eudora chasing the football and basketball seasons he expected, and the diagnosis that followed was transverse myelitis, a spinal cord illness that forced him to start over.

Wenger spent three weeks at Children's Mercy Hospital before he was discharged, still with only partial feeling in his legs, about 70 percent in one and 30 percent in the other. Transverse myelitis is caused by inflammation of the spinal cord and can lead to weakness, paralysis, sensory loss and bowel or bladder problems. Most people recover at least partially, with the biggest gains often coming in the first three months, but healing can take much longer and some people live with lasting effects.

For Wenger, that meant no football or basketball in his final year at Eudora High School. His left side came back faster than his right, and he had to learn how to move through school and recovery with a body that did not work the way it once did. Friends, teammates and community members kept showing up, and Wenger stayed close to the program by helping coaches and encouraging younger players on the bench.

During his senior year, Wenger joined Student Council and took part in the fall musical, Mamma Mia!, both for the first time.

Wenger joined the Eudora boys golf team in spring 2026. He played in two scramble tournaments, won one and finished second in the other, then placed in the top 20 in his only individual tournament. Kansas Golf Scores lists him as a Class of 2026 player from Eudora with one tournament, one round, a best finish of 18th and a season average of 118.0.

The swing forced Wenger to strengthen his back and manage the twisting motion that comes with the game. Douglas County’s population was estimated at 120,920 on July 1, 2025, after the 2020 Census counted 118,785.