LEWISTON – Josh Kennison wants to be a motivational speaker, or perhaps a teacher and coach.

He might be the only man on the planet who can accomplish those goals without saying a word.

All it takes a glimpse of the 20-year-old engaging in all the activities typical of his peers: Consuming sports drinks by the gallon; driving a car as fast as he’s allowed; trying to maintain some semblance of order in his first apartment; maintaining a high profile on his social networking pages; playing multiple sports while keeping a tireless schedule with energy that makes people in his parents’ generation jealous.

“I’m constantly working out,” Kennison said. “You have to be when you walk into Wal-Mart and candy bars are 10 cents, you know what I’m saying?”

Not that willpower is a problem for Kennison.

The cheerful college student is a quadrilateral congenital amputee. He was born without feet and hands and with a jaw malformation. His arms end approximately at the elbows. Prosthetic legs transport Kennison wherever he wants to go.

Do they ever.

This week he’ll walk onto a plane bound for the 11th-annual Endeavor Games at the University of Central Oklahoma in Edmond. Kennison will run 100- and 200-meter races Saturday and Sunday against other athletes who share the same handicap.

That last word rings woefully inaccurate and unjust, of course. Kennison’s personal-best times audibly laugh those of us with unshackled but sedentary bodies to shame. He flirts with 12 seconds in the 100 and can sniff 25 ticks in the 200.

“It’s not so much about the sports aspect as staying healthy,“ Kennison said. “I’m really not sure yet where it’s all going to lead. I’m sure God will show me somewhere along the path. I always keep my eyes open.”

SPRING IN HIS STEP

Athletics and the life of a role model aren’t new to Kennison.

He was a four-year track and field runner and soccer player at Oxford Hills, where his endurance overcame any physical limitations.

Kennison even went out for the football team as a senior, as the team’s kicker.

“I tried it for about a month and went back to playing soccer,” Kennison said. “I didn’t like it all that much. It’s the only thing I’ve ever quit in my life.”

Running and jumping were never a problem for Kennison, but the prosthetic legs he used in high school were better suited to endurance events.

Only recently, with the help of Hanger Prosthetics and Orthotics, has Kennison transformed himself into a sprinter. Purpose-built with a rubbery material, Kennison’s new legs are designed for speed.

“The only thing that ever went through my mind was that I wanted to become a Major League Soccer player. I never realized I could compete in track and field at this level, never,” Kennison said. “The amputee athletic community really didn’t start until the 1980s.

“Then the technology started to change. I used to run the mile because I didn’t have these (legs). I couldn’t have kept up with the competition. These are built to run really fast. They’re springy.”

Since the snow melted, Kennison has worked out almost every day at Oxford Hills Middle School. He’s also a volunteer coach with the track and field program there.

MAN OF MANY TALENTS

Kennison’s presence at the track doesn’t generate many impolite stares or awkward questions in the close-knit community, where his myriad athletic exploits have become legendary.

He kicks a football 55 yards, straight. Has thrown one 40 yards, in a tight spiral. Plays tennis, too.

Spectators at Central Maine Community College, where Kennison is a student, have watched him sink free throws and 3-pointers at halftime of basketball games.

“I was at a game and the guy in front of me turned around and said, ‘Did I just see that?’ And all I could say is, ‘Yes, you did.’ When he was a baby and would cry, his mother (Louanne Rainey) wouldn’t pick him up. She would never allow him to be handicapped,” said Don Winckler, a community outreach minister at Moss Brook Community Church and a mentor of Kennison. “You see that when you watch him pick up a bottle and drink. He drives a car without any modifications. He lives by himself. You see all that and you realize that it was her influence. That is powerful stuff.”

“They didn’t have the ultrasound exams they do now when I was born,“ Kennison said. “My mom didn’t even know anything was wrong until I came out. Then it was like, ‘Surprise! Something’s missing.’ ”

In addition to his keen sense of humor, Kennison demonstrates a self-discipline uncommon in adults twice his age.

He has sworn off strawberry soda — “my weakness,” he said — as part of his training. Carbohydrates and proteins have replaced sugars in his diet.

Even with that level of commitment, his expectations for Oklahoma are minimal.

“This is my first amateur competition since high school. I’m a little nervous. There’s really no pressure. I just want to go out and do my best,” Kennison said. “My goal out there is to try to inspire my teammates and my opponents. To show people that it doesn’t matter what you have for handicaps or differences.”

SHOW AND TELL

Even if his running career ends here, Kennison will have a lifetime of inspiration to offer his growing, captive audience.

Kennison is a counselor at Camp No Limits, an affiliate of the Pine Tree Camp in Rome. There, he works with children who are coming to grips with limb loss.

This fall, he’ll take off a semester from his own education to share his story at local schools. Kennison also plans to continue coaching soccer and track.

In September he’ll lead a team of amputee athletes in a 200-mile “Reach the Beach” trek across New Hampshire to benefit amputees in earthquake-ravaged Haiti.

“I’m starting to focus on kids 12 to 15 years old, junior high and kids in that time frame. A lot of them are from broken-down homes. They have divorced parents. A lot of these kids just need hope and need someone to listen to them,” Kennison said. “That’s why I feel like I’m a good coach right now. I’m young. I connect with them on a certain level.”

Kennison hopes, however, that Oklahoma is merely the beginning of his own athletic journey.

His long-term goal is to qualify for the 2012 Paralympics in London.

“It’s going to take a lot of work. I don’t think I even realize how much work that’s going to take. I’ve trained a lot the last three months, and it’s going to require so much more than that,” he said. “A lot of people who compete in the Paralympics start training as soon as they can walk. Of course, people have accidents every day where they lose their limbs, and they’re already athletes and they go on to win gold medals at the Paralympics. But most people start young.”

Then again, so did Kennison.

Friends, mentors, practitioners and casual acquaintances alike shudder to think what he might accomplish by the time he’s old.

“Josh is all about helping others and giving people hope,” Winckler said.

“Whatever you put your mind to, you can accomplish. That’s really why I’m here today and what my whole life is all about,” echoed Kennison. “My motto is, ‘No whining.’ No excuses. You do whatever you need to do to get where you want to go.

“I’m just starting to realize how powerful my story is.”

koakes@sunjournal.com

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