“A boy’s story is the best that is ever told.” — Charles Dickens

Stephen Joshua Hensley was born on Monday, June 5, 1989 — the first child of Steve and Beverly Hensley. From the beginning, Stephen was full of life: strong-willed, determined, and brimming with playful energy. There was never a dull moment with him. He was athletic and loved all kinds of sports. He played baseball, flag-football, basketball, and even earned a brown belt in karate. As much as he loved sports, he loved his family and friends more. Stephen especially loved his younger sister, Angelique, just four years his junior, but dear to him in every way. Growing up in a minister’s home, he was taught the importance of serving others. At age six, he was baptized and received salvation with the infilling of the Holy Spirit. He spent much of his youth at FPC, where he was deeply involved in church life. He was such a blessing to our lives, and we cherished watching him grow.

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As time went on, the world began to change — and so did life’s challenges. With age came the not-so-easy side of life. We tried to shield him from ridicule and bullying, from the pain of losing loved ones, but by the age of 13 he had been through a lot. Stephen endured the pain of the deaths of close friends and his grandparents. As the world around him changed, he struggled with grief, depression, anxiety, and finding ways to cope. Music gave him solace.​ At the age of 15, he was signed to begin developing an album. He played a few church concerts and youth events, and was a regular attendee at concerts by artists like 12 Stones, Kings of Leon, MercyMe, Kutless, and Chris Tomlin. Stephen's first single, Living to Die, reflected the depth of his emotions. He explained:

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“I wrote this song in a state and time when a lot of my friends and family had passed and bad things and trials were happening in my life and in the lives of so many people I knew.”

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Living to Die
I don’t understand everything,
I don’t want to anyway.
I know everything’s gonna be alright,
‘Cause He wipes the tears from my eyes.

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Stephen was often misunderstood, but he had deep compassion for people trapped in addiction or living with mental illness. He felt the world didn’t understand those silently suffering. Stephen was real — “what you saw was what you got.” He had the rare gift of meeting people in their pain. He loved deeply — his family, his friends, and his God.​  In the last year of his life, Stephen had graduated high school, started working, was planning to get engaged to his girlfriend, and was studying to become a minister. He was also seeking a path to work in mental health and substance abuse — hoping to help others find healing, just as he had sought for himself.  A tragic car accident took all of this away. I wish I could change some of the harsh realities he faced in his young life. I wish we lived in a world where tragedy didn’t strike so soon. But I can’t change the past.​​  I can only honor his memory now by finding ways to help others who are struggling as he wanted to do. 

- Beverly Hensley