Ab-Titchaz
JF-Expert Member
- Jan 30, 2008
- 14,631
- 4,225
WESTWEGO, La. -- Chris Henry's fiancee wept as she spoke about the Cincinnati Bengals receiver at his funeral Tuesday, and she said while she may have helped steer him out of trouble, he changed her life.
Henry, 26, was killed after he fell out of a pickup truck bed being driven by his fiance Loleini Tonga during what police described as a domestic dispute. Police are investigating, but no charges have been filed.
"Can't nobody feel what I'm feeling right now. ... We loved each other very much. People say I helped change his life. No. He changed mine," said Tonga, wearing sunglasses and pausing between sentences. "We were supposed to get married in three months, but I'm going to wait until I see him again."
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and Henry's teammates were among the hundreds who packed the New Orleans Hornets practice facility for the funeral. The Bengals wore round lapels with Henry's No. 15. Many others wore red ribbons with a small photo of Henry that read: "In loving memory" and "Chris 'Slim' Henry."
Goodell said everyone makes mistakes.
"His future as a husband and a father were important to him," Goodell said. "He was a young man that struggled, made some decisions that he regretted, but he put himself on the right path. And I'm proud of that. I'm proud of him."
Cincinnati quarterback Carson Palmer and head coach Marvin Lewis were expected to deliver eulogies. Lewis said before the service that Henry touched a lot of people in his very short life.
