Man who received transplanted heart from suicide victim married donor's widow before taking own life
Warning: This article contains discussion of suicide which some readers may find distressing.
The man who received a life-saving heart transplant would later die the exact same way as his donor – years after marrying his widow.
In April 2008, Sonny Graham, a 69-year-old retired telecommunications manager, walked out of his home in the US state of Georgia and took his own life with a self-inflicted gunshot wound. His death was chillingly similar to that of Terry Cottle, a 33-year-old man who died by suicide in March 1995.
The two men's stories had become entwined shortly after Cottle's death.
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Four days before Cottle's death, the father was rushed to hospital with a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, following an argument with his wife Cheryl in which the couple decided to separate.
Who was Terry Cottle?
According to Snopes, Terry Cottle crossed paths with his future wife Cheryl Sweat in 1988. The daughter of his boss, Cheryl was several years younger than Terry and, like him, married to someone else.
Both Terry and Cheryl would ultimately leave their respective partners and tie the knot in May 1989. The couple would go on to have a daughter together while Terry adopted Cheryl's both of sons from a previous relationship.
However the wedded bliss would not last forever, as Terry had remained in contact with his ex-wife behind Cheryl's back and in March 1995, it was decided they would separate permanently.
Recalling Terry's death in a police report, Cheryl revealed that she'd been eating her breakfast when their son came running in saying: "Mom, Dad has a gun!" She then ran to the bathroom where her estranged husband was holding a gun.
He was rushed to a hospital in Georgia but was removed from life support four days later. His organs were donated, with his heart being given to a 57-year-old man named Sonny Graham.
Who was Sonny Graham – and how did he meet Cheryl Cottle?
In the town of Hilton Head, South Carolina, Sonny was close to congestive heart failure after an infection had damaged his heart muscle and waiting on a transplant list when he received the call to say that a near match had become available.
Sonny went on to receive 33-year-old Terry's heart, an operation which saved his life.
After recovering from the transplant Sonny was back to his old self once again. However, friends and family began to notice subtle changes. He even declined to see a counsellor after the transplant, reportedly telling his friend Bill Carson (via CBS): "I'm sorry the other guy died. But this is my heart now."
Sonny was now a fan of hotdogs and beer - items loved by Terry - and reportedly became restless. In late 1996, Sonny decided to write to Cheryl to thank her for the heart and by early 1997, he and his wife decided to meet her in person.
Sonny, now 59, was taken with 30-year-old Cheryl, later saying that he 'fell in love' with her at the first meeting.
"I felt like I had known her for years," he later told The Hilton Head Island Packet in 2006.
While Cheryl did not initially reciprocate Sonny's romantic advances, the couple would stay in touch and eventually get together, marrying 2004. Sonny would leave his wife of 38 years for the younger bride, obtaining a divorce three years prior in 2001.
The couple's marriage initially seemed a happy one, with the pair being interviewed by local newspaper The Hilton Head Island Packet on their two-year wedding anniversary, in which Cheryl said: "It's true what it says in the Bible, If you live God's will and give with a happy heart, you will reap the rewards."
However Sonny would fatally shoot himself just two years later, the same way in which Terry had ended his own life.
The nature of Sonny's death, and its similarities to Terry's, would leave his family with numerous unanswered questions, with his grandchildren asking why Sonny would've made plans on the day he took his own life.
Despite this, police in Georgia ultimately ruled that Sonny's death was a suicide in September 2009.
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, please don’t suffer alone. Call Samaritans for free on their anonymous 24-hour phone line on 116 123 or contact Harmless by visiting their website https://harmless.org.uk.
Topics: Community, Mental Health
Brenna Cooper