IN FOOD:
Spice up those game-day wings C3, C8 PANORAMA
Spoleto 2015: Over 100 programs; hard choices C1
SERVING SOUTH CAROLINA SINCE OCTOBER 15, 1894
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 14, 2015
75 CENTS
S.C. General Assembly starts 121st session BY JEFFREY COLLINS The Associated Press COLUMBIA — The state sword was placed in the Senate on Tuesday and the state mace is in its spot in the House, officially beginning the 121st session of the South Carolina General Assembly. The first day of the session is much like the first day of school — lots of talking and catching up, but not a lot of work being accomplished. Lawmakers will have until June to get things done, such as more funding for roads, improving education and overhauling state ethics laws. There were new faces leading each chamber. House Speaker Jay Lucas ran his first regular session after taking
over for Bobby Harrell, who pleaded guilty to campaign finance violations last year. Lt. Gov. Yancey McGill, who took over for Glenn McConnell after he left in June to be president of the College of Charleston, watched over the Senate. It was also the last day for McGill. New lieutenant governor Henry McMaster will wear the purple robe today after he is sworn in, along with Gov. Nikki Haley and other state officials. Here are the highlights of the brief session Tuesday.
HOUSE Lucas promised a more efficient, prompt House. The session was supposed to start at noon. He hit the gavel at 11:59 a.m.
Brawl rooted in lovers’ quarrel
There was much less chaos in the chamber Tuesday. Members thanked others for support, and Lucas was given a framed story about himself from the Republican Women’s Caucus. Otherwise, it was a quiet day. The House finished its business in about an hour and will come back briefly before Haley’s inaugural today.
SENATE The senators didn’t start promptly at noon, but they stayed a lot longer. The Senate immediately voted Hugh Leatherman back in as president pro tem and he took the floor to tell his colleagues his plans for running things. Leatherman ascended to the powerful post in June with the movement surround-
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
S.C. Senate President Pro Tem Hugh Leatherman speaks to senators on the first day of the legislative session as Lt. Gov. Yancey McGill and other Senate staffers listen on Tuesday in Columbia. Leatherman told members he expects more decorum this session. ing McConnell’s resignation. The Florence Republican also is chairman of the Senate’s
budget-writing committee and
SEE LEGISLATURE, PAGE A6
Kimberly Henderson’s “Tiny Hearts” released
BY MATT BRUCE matthew@theitem.com More details emerged this week about a feud between two Sumter County families that fueled a violent street brawl on Jan. 4 outside Young’s store. The melee touched off a week full of arrests, as four people were charged last week in connection with the incident, and resulted in one man being airlifted from the scene with critical injuries. Investigators all last week attributed the frenzied fight to an ongoing dispute between the two conflicting families, primarily made up of Hendersons pitted against Gaineys. Sumter County Sheriff’s Office released an incident report late Monday which seemed to shed light on what started the feud. According to the report, the sordid saga likely originated about a woman. Several of the people who played pivotal roles in the recent incident were named in a Sept. 14, 2013 report; the incident played out at the home of Crystal and Donnie Gainey in the 400 block of Catie Street. Joseph Henderson Jr. and his younger brother, Joshua, were part of a trio of suspects that allegedly stormed into the Gaineys’ backyard during an apparent party. The Henderson brothers were joined by a man identified as Thomas Donlon, who was 20 years old at the time of the 2013 incident. The report indicates the three walked into the yard just before 1 a.m. on a Saturday morning, confronting a man and two juveniles who were in the yard. One of the victims told officers that Donlon and the Hendersons walked up to them with someone asking, “Which one of you is messing with my baby’s mama?” (“Baby’s mama” is a colloquial term describing a mother who is not married to the father of her child.) The Hendersons and Donlon then began attacking the three partygoers, causing cuts and bruises that led one of the juvenile victims to seek treatment at Tuomey Regional Medical Center. The report went on to state that Crystal and Donnie Gainey came out of their home after hearing the assault and tried to make Donlon
SEE FEUD, PAGE A6
VISIT US ONLINE AT
the
.com
KEITH GEDAMKE / THE SUMTER ITEM
Kimberly Henderson, left, poses for a selfie with Stephanie Chandler during the release for her single “Tiny Hearts” at Colonial Family Practice on Tuesday. Henderson posted a video of her singing a lullaby to her child on her Facebook page and has gotten some 20 million views. Her single was released on Apple’s iTunes service on Tuesday.
Sumter mom goes ‘viral,’ releases single BY HAMLET FORT hamlet@theitem.com Sumter native Kimberly Henderson never imagined how a normal act of motherhood would change her life. One night in November, Henderson, 26, awoke to her 16-month-old daughter, Vaida, crying in the night. She went to soothe her back to sleep the only way she says she’s ever known — singing. “It’s kind of our thing,” said Henderson of Vaida. “She wasn’t sleeping at all. We usually go in the kitchen, and I’ll walk around the house and sing songs. Nine times out of 10 she passes out.” It wasn’t your typical lullaby. “We don’t do the normal lullabies that normal moms do to their kids,” said Henderson. This particular night, Henderson went with Sam Smith’s cover version of Whitney Houston’s “How Will I Know.” On a whim, she propped up her iPhone in her kitchen and hit record while holding Vaida in her arms. At first, Henderson said the video was for “personal memory,” but she later uploaded the video to her Facebook page. A Se-
CONTACT US Information: 774-1200 Advertising: 774-1237 Classifieds: 774-1234 Delivery: 774-1258 News and Sports: 774-1226
attle, Washington, radio station shared the video, and it gained 5 million views within a day. Now Henderson estimates that more than 20 million people have seen the video. It was instantly picked up by outlets such as “Good Morning America,” the “Daily Mail” in London, and “Sunrise” in Australia, all requesting to share her story. Producers and record companies contacted her, and weeks after the video went viral, she was flying to Los Angeles. There she recorded a single, “Tiny Hearts,” and the track was released on iTunes on Tuesday. Henderson wrote the song with two collaborators, and she says her four children are the inspiration for the song — Kayleigh, 9; Brianna, 8; Aiden, 5; and Vaida. Henderson is grateful for her success, and she said she’s learned that motherhood isn’t an obstacle to following her dreams. “It’s always been in the back of my head that I want this,” she said. “But it’s always been there too that I have four kids, and I have two jobs. I have a life. Stuff like that doesn’t happen to people like me. Little did I know, being a mom actually made that happen.”
DEATHS, B6 Lillie W. Tindal Annette R. Hancock Bablee Briggs Wessie W. Johnson Maude W. Bowman
Dorothy Mae Jenkins Nichole V. Dawkins Darlene Burke Miriam P. Scott
She doubts it ever would have happened if she hadn’t sang to her daughter in the middle of the night. Henderson said she hasn’t seen or heard from her own mother since she was 11. She hopes her newfound notoriety may spark a reunion, if anything, “for closure.” Her experiences growing up inspire her to always be there for her children despite her selfadmitted imperfections as a mother. She’s happy for the lessons she’s learned from this new experience and hopes she can pass them to her kids. “I’m not a perfect mom,” she said. “Any mom that has a dream of being a painter, an artist, a singer, a dancer, anything, you can still pursue that,” she said. “It doesn’t make you selfish. It shows your kids that you can pursue dreams if you have hardships in front of you.” The release party for “Tiny Hearts,” on Tuesday evening at Colonial Family Practice on Broad Street, where Henderson is a certified medical assistant, turned out family and friends looking to show their support.
WEATHER, A8 COLD AND WET Cloudy, misty and chilly today, 40 percent chance of precipitation; overcast tonight. HIGH 45, LOW 29
SEE HENDERSON, PAGE A6
INSIDE 3 SECTIONS, 24 PAGES VOL. 120, NO. 75
Panorama C1 Lotteries A8 Classifieds B7 Opinion A7 Comics C6 Television C7