Death
On December 16, 2009, Henry was involved in a car accident in Charlotte, North Carolina, where he sustained grave injuries. Charlotte police stated that Henry fell out of the back of a moving truck driven by his fiancee, Loleini Tonga, while they were engaged in a domestic dispute. Tonga has three children by Henry. On December 17, 2009, Charlotte police announced that Henry had died at 6:36 a.m. ET at Carolinas Medical Center. Two days later, on December 19, police confirmed that Henry died of blunt force trauma to the head. No charges were filed against his fiancee, and police announced that they found no evidence that Tonga drove recklessly or with excessive speed.
To honor Henry, every game of Week 15 (December 17–21) in the NFL began with a moment of silence before kickoff.
"Our football team, what they're feeling yesterday and this morning ... they watched a guy mature as a young man and work through adversity," -Cincinnati Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis
On December 20, three days after Henry's death, the Bengals traveled to Qualcomm Stadium to face the San Diego Chargers. As with all the other Week 15 games, a moment of silence was held before kickoff. Bengals wide receiver Chad Ochocinco, a close friend of Henry's, openly wept during the silence. Later in the game, on his first touchdown reception, Ochocinco dropped to his knee and paid tribute to Henry in the endzone.
In June 2010, the Brain Injury Research Institute of West Virginia University released a report that Henry had developed a brain disease called chronic traumatic encephalopathy during his playing career due to multiple hard hits to the head. While several former NFL players had been found to have the disease after their deaths, Henry was believed to be the first still-active NFL player to have it. The discovery that Henry had CTE has become a serious issue of concern for football and brain safety, especially since Henry was relatively young and had never been diagnosed with a concussion in either his five NFL seasons or his college career at West Virginia. Concern has been raised whether an accumulation of lesser blows could eventually be enough to cause brain damage. It was also believed that the brain damage Henry suffered may have been a factor in his numerous off-the-field incidents.
After his death, Henry's mother made the decision to donate his organs for transplant. Henry's corneas, lungs, kidneys, heart, liver, and pancreas were transplanted, saving the lives of four people.
Read more about this topic: Chris Henry (wide Receiver)
Famous quotes containing the word death:
“According to legend, Dr. Sappington purchased his coffin several years before his death and kept it under his bed, with apples and nuts in it for his visiting grandchildren.”
—Administration in the State of Miss, U.S. public relief program (1935-1943)
“And of the other things death is a new office building filled with modern furniture,
A wise thing, but which has no purpose for us.”
—John Ashbery (b. 1927)
“As death, when we come to consider it closely, is the true goal of our existence, I have formed during the last few years such close relations with this best and truest friend of mankind, that his image is not only no longer terrifying to me, but is indeed very soothing and consoling! And I thank my God for graciously granting me the opportunity ... of learning that death is the key which unlocks the door to our true happiness.”
—Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791)