The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks Chapter 12 Summary

The Storm (1951)

  • Now we're in Part 2 ("Death").
  • After George Gey learned of Henrietta's death, he wanted to get cell samples from her organs. He knew that scientists want to grow different types of cell cultures in the lab, and since they'd had such good luck with HeLa cells, it seemed like the only thing to do.
  • But things had changed. Henrietta was dead, and now Gey needed Day's permission to take cells from her body.
  • At first Day refused permission for an autopsy. After Hopkins told him that they wanted to run tests that might help his children, he relented.
  • Gey's assistant Mary helped to collect the samples from Henrietta's corpse, and she was none too happy about the experience.
  • She nearly fainted when she saw the meticulous Henrietta's chipped red toenail polish. It hit home with her that Henrietta was a person, not just a scientific subject.
  • After the autopsy, Henrietta's body was sent back to Clover on the train. Cousins Cliff and Fred had dug her a grave in the family cemetery, while Gladys and Sadie prepared her body.
  • Henrietta's wake was held in her home, with family and friends gathering to say farewell. When it came time to bury her, a serious storm blew up around the mourners.
  • The storm was so severe that another Lacks cousin (not attending the funeral) was crushed to death when the wind destroyed his house.
  • Henrietta's family took the catastrophic storm as a sign from their deceased beloved.