A Tennessee Valley organ donor who died following a motorcycle crash will live on because her organs helped save five other people.

Caressa Houchins, 42, died June 2 at Vanderbilt Hospital in Nashville. She sustained a serious head injury in a May 26 motorcycle crash near Cookeville, Tennessee.

Houchins’ death helped save five lives after her pancreas, heart, kidneys, liver and lungs were donated.

“She was a good-hearted woman and very unselfish,” said her husband, Jeremiah Houchins. “She loved people in all aspects.”

Jeremiah was driving the motorcycle the day of the fatal crash. He and Caressa were going into a curve when the brakes locked up and the bike went into a skid.

“I couldn’t correct it and it threw us off to the opposite side,” Jeremiah said, adding it took about 25 minutes before paramedics arrived, though aid was rendered by passers-by.

Caressa was unresponsive at the scene. She and Jeremiah were initially taken to Cookeville Regional Medical Center, but Caressa was later transported to Vanderbilt.

Jeremiah, who said he was “banged up” in the crash, went to Vanderbilt as soon as he could and never left his wife’s side. He added there was a steady stream of visitors who came to see her in the hospital.

“The doctors at Vanderbilt told me it was the first time they had ever had to clear out more room so they could talk to the friends and family at one time,” he said.

Devoted to family

Jeremiah and Caressa had been together for 14 years and married in March 2016. Both were avid motorcycle enthusiasts. They resided in Taft, Tennessee, but Jeremiah worked in Athens and Caressa worked in Madison.

“We were a big part of the motorcycle community around Ardmore,” he said.

A memorial service for Caressa is set for 4 p.m. Saturday at Ardmore Chapel Funeral Home.

When asked about Caressa’s impact on five families through organ donation, Jeremiah said it meant “everything” to him and her family.

“That’s what she wanted,” he said, adding he would urge others to consider becoming donors.

Jeremiah said he would also like to meet those who benefited from his wife’s organs if that’s a possibility. He said Tennessee Donor Services would contact him after the recipient has had one year to recover from the transplant. The decision to meet Jeremiah would be up to the recipient.

“I would love to meet with them,” he said, adding he planned to become an organ donor. “She was truly loved by so many and (organ donation) was her wish.”

Donations are being collected to help the family with hospital expenses. To see the GoFundMe page, visit www.gofundme.com/5lq25ig.

Caressa Houchins is survived by Jeremiah; father, Joe David (Mary) Beard; mother, Louanne (Rickard) Parker; sons, Chris Beard and Jalen Houchins; daughters, Felicia Beard and Tiffany Davis; brother, Ricky Parker; sisters, Brandi Martinez, Kesha Parker and Shaina Parker; and four grandchildren.