Drowning victim was caring dad, uncle says
Christopher Heaton died Tuesday when he dived into the Tennessee River after his girlfriend’s car began to sink.
Christopher Heaton was proud of his two young sons, always showing off photos of them.
“He was always bragging about them,” said Chris York, who worked with 25-year-old Heaton at Advance Auto in Jasper, Tenn.
Heaton, a father of 3- and 4year-old boys, died Tuesday when he dived into the Tennessee River near Bridgeport, Ala., after he saw his girlfriend’s car sinking. He apparently did not see that his girlfriend was being helped to shore by a fisherman at the time, authorities say.
But there was a car seat in the back of his girlfriend’s car, and his family believes Heaton was trying to rescue a child who he thought still was inside.
Heaton and his girlfriend — whose name police have not released — don’t have any children together, but she has two children who were not in the car, Jackson County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Rocky Harnen said.
Regardless of whom Heaton was trying to save, friends and family describe him as a young man who put those he loved first.
“That’s the way he was,” said Heaton’s uncle, Don Skiles, who was reached by phone Thursday.
Heaton was a good father to his sons, Skiles said, and was living with his grandparents, raising the boys as he worked and went to school.
The whole family had a part in raising Heaton, he said.
“It feels like you lost your own child,” Skiles said.
Heaton was supposed to meet his girlfriend at the old ferry boat ramp in Bridgeport, Harnen said. Sheila Wilson walks past the Occupy Chattanooga site on her way to lunch Thursday. “I haven’t paid any more attention to them today than the first day they showed up. All I know is they are destroying the courthouse front lawn,” Wilson said. Today is the 100th day of Occupy Chattanooga’s campout at the Hamilton County Courthouse.
and hypothermia, he said. tenance degree from Chat
When the car was pulled tanooga State Community from the river Wednesday, College, according to inforpolice found the parking mation in his obituary. brake still was engaged, He was hired about a month The woman parked her car Harnen said. But police aren’t ago at Advance Auto and also on the steep ramp — so steep clear on why the woman was was an apprentice learning to it would be hard for someparked on a boat ramp in the lay gas lines, York said. one to walk up, Harnen said first place. “He was a hard worker,” — between 4:30 and 5:30 p.m. A rescue team found HeaYork said. “Always making CST. ton’s body nearly five hours sure [his kids] were provided
The car slipped into thefor.”later about 40 yards from the water and immediately was shore. Contact staff writer Joy swept away by the current, Heaton, a Richard Hardy Lukachick at jlukachick@ Harnen said. The woman Memorial School graduate, timesfreepress.com or 423later was treated for bruises earned his industrial main- 757-6559. schoolers.
Not one to hoard credit, Dunn said, “baseball is a team game, and that’s how we try to run things.”
Though the league is privately run, county employees occasionally come out to work on issues such as plumbing, Dunn said. To show his thanks, he throws a luncheon for county workers every year and serves his own cooking. Last year, more than 70 workers showed up.
Besides his work with the Harrison Recreation Association, Dunn serves as vice president of Dizzy Dean Baseball, an organization that promotes baseball in the region, and the Scenic City Youth Football League.
Contact staff writer Steve Hardy at 423-757-6476 or shardy@timesfreepress.com.