Following the devastating death of his young wife, Corey Henderson felt moved to help raise awareness about the potentially deadly consequences of epilepsy – the neurological disorder that, essentially, claimed the mother of their three children.
It was also a stark reminder that life can be short, so he began to compile a bucket list.
The Orillia man will cross an item off that bucket list and raise money for epilepsy by doing something he concedes is “crazy”. He’s going to jump out of an airplane from 12,000 feet above terra firma.
“People think I’m crazy, but it’s something that gets people’s attention and that’s what I’m trying to do,” Henderson told OrilliaMatters of his plan to skydive in August. “When Terry Fox decided to run across the country to raise cancer, they probably thought he was crazy, too.”
Corey’s wife, Catherine, had her first seizure in 2005. The next one didn’t occur for several months. “At the time, she was pregnant with our eldest child,” recalled Henderson. “In the following years, the frequency of the seizures increased and increased.”
The efforts of doctors to pinpoint the source of the problem with MRIs and other tests were “frustrated by Catherine’s claustrophobia,” said Corey. “It was impossible for her to stay calm in closed-in environments for the time required to get a meaningful result.”
In 2015, the nightmare turned to tragedy. After Corey went to work, his father-in-law picked up the three kids for an outing. When they returned, they found Catherine sprawled awkwardly and motionless on the front steps of the family home. She wasn’t breathing.
“She went outside for a smoke and had another seizure,” said Henderson. Paramedics determined that when she fell, she struck her head on the concrete and landed in such a way that her airway was obstructed and she was unable to breathe.
“She never regained consciousness,” said Henderson of his 37-year-old wife. “Our lives have changed drastically since then.”
At that time, the family lived in Alberta. Soon after, Henderson decided to move back to Ontario to be closer to his family; he needed their help. So, he relocated to Orillia, where his parents reside.
It hasn’t been easy. But, slowly, the family is adjusting to their new life. And they feel now is the right time to honour Catherine and try to raise money for the fight against epilepsy.
“From what I’ve learned from Epilepsy Canada, there are over 380,000 people in this country who have epilepsy,” said Henderson. “Many more have not been officially diagnosed. But most people don’t understand it and it doesn’t get the attention things like breast cancer or leukemia get.”
Henderson hopes to raise $10,000 with his skydiving effort. “Originally, I planned to do it by myself, but now some others have joined me and I’m challenging people to come on board and to help us raise money.”
The Orillia man, a pharmacy assistant at Shoppers Drug Mart, says the money raised will be donated to Epilepsy Canada to aid research related to an innovative helmet-like device under development.
“It’s a helmet or band that is placed on the head to map out brain activity and help to pinpoint where seizures start,” said Henderson. “If the technology was more available five years ago, it may have helped Catherine.”
It’s also about raising awareness, he said. “I really hope this story is shared around the world and it gets people talking about epilepsy,” he said. “I also wanted to create a bit of legacy for the kids, to show them how much I loved their mom. And if I can raise a bit of money in the process, that’s great.”
Henderson admits the thought of jumping from a plane, even though he will be tethered to a professional, is frightening.
“I suffer from anxiety, I don’t like heights so, yeah, I’m very scared,” he said. “I’m hoping the adrenalin rush kicks in. I’m going to be falling for 40-50 seconds at, like, 120 miles per hour before the chute opens … it kind of freaks me out just thinking about it.”
Henderson will jump Aug. 11 – the date of his 45th birthday. If you are interested in donating or joining him at Skydive Toronto in Cookstown, click here: epilepsy.ca/skydiving-for-epilepsy.html
