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Student who received heart transplant will be missed by many
Henderson, who was the daughter of Erika and Timothy Abston, received a heart transplant in July of 2005, after waiting nearly a year for a replacement for her heart, which had stopped working properly due to a condition known as cardiomyopathy. The ventricles (bottom chambers) of the heart get larger but aren't able to pump enough blood, resulting in heart failure. Simply put, it's an enlargement of the heart. Ironically, according to her stepfather, Timothy Abston, doctors have been unable to determine exactly what caused Henderson's death. "Her body did not reject her heart," he said. "They don't know if it (her death) was caused by something else to do with her heart or her diabetes." Henderson was also a Type I diabetic. He said his stepdaughter wasn't even sick or feeling bad on Jan. 12 when she left to go to school. "We got up that morning and the day started as normal. We did the breakfast thing and had our morning prayer and were joking and playing around. She had recently gotten her license and was very excited. She had been driving to school and had made plans with her younger sister for later that day." Abston said at lunchtime, Henderson told a friend that she did not like what was being offered for lunch and left to go to the restroom. When she did not return a little while later, her friend went to the restroom to check on her and found her on the floor. "She was talking and laughing with the nurse after that, but when she got to the hospital she quietly died," said Abston. "It's been hard for us at times, but we take comfort in the fact that she went peacefully, surrounded by family and friends. We are also happy that we had her with us as long as we did. We remember and cherish the time she was with us." Henderson enjoyed singing, talking on the phone with her friends, shopping, listening to her favorite music and dancing. She also enjoyed cross-stitching, a hobby she picked up during the time she spent waiting on her heart transplant. During an interview in November of 2005, Henderson said she had plans of one day becoming a social psychologist and hoped to attend college at either Stillman or UAB when she graduated high school.
Funeral services were conducted at Pine Chapel Baptist Church No. 2 in Toddtown, followed by burial in the church cemetery. Jackson Memorial Funeral Home directed.
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