Martin Luther King once said; “There is no insignificant or ordinary jobs when they are performed by significant and extraordinary people.” One of these extraordinary people is Abbey Henderson.

Abbey Henderson was born and raised in Chillicothe. Although they moved away and lived down south for a few years, by the time she was in the fourth grade they had moved back to Chillicothe and Abbey was attending St. Edwards School. She then went on to graduate from I.V.C. in 1997. Because she loved art, she attended I.C.C. for a year, thinking she wanted to be an art teacher, but she quickly found that was not for her when she found out how little teachers were being paid.

Abbey has lived with her significant other, Michael Guyon for years. She states they have no plans of marriage, they are happy just as they are. Michael has two grown children from his first marriage, and they have four big dogs that keep her busy.

She started waitressing at Grecian Gardens when she was in high school. She just loves to interact with people. Later she tended bar at Rivercity for a while and said, “I loved going to work, it felt like a party every night and it was fun being with everyone.” She tells us that she has also worked at Dockside, Castaways, Chilli Bowl, and Lucky Dogs and always made good money.

Abbey says she has worked hard and saved her money. She credits Dave Ramsey’s podcasts on how to manage your money in helping her make good choices with her finances. Using his method and common sense, she had her house paid off by the time she was 40.

Right now she is working as a server at Heather’s Wine Nook five days a week. She says it is a dream job. She has wonderful coworkers that all get along great, and she only works from 10-4:30 each day, no nights or weekends. As much as Abbey loves people she says she is really a homebody. At home, she likes to listen to books on tape, and watch movies, and in the spring, summer, and fall she loves to garden and take care of her flowers—she even won the Shademakers Beautification Award one year. She jokes that another one of her awards was the pig-kissing champion three years in a row at Chillicothe Days!

She and Michael love to go to flea markets and estate sales and hunt out unusual things. To prove it, she has a full-sized light-up telephone booth in their backyard! Last year, the couple bought a motor home so they could travel a bit, but she says she is always anxious to get back home again. She and Michael have just bought four acres in the country and are planning to start building a Barndominium soon. They are looking forward to having it done within two years.

Heather’s Wine Nook is open for meals from 11-4pm each day. When you come in to eat, Abbey greets you with a smile on her face and treats you like an old friend; she jokes and interacts with everyone. She states, “People come in for the sarcasm and stay for the food, and owners Sandy and Dennis Luckett put out a variety of great food!” When you come in, you’ll always see Abbey in shorts....all year round. She says she is just more comfortable in them.

She admits she has no filter on her mouth. She laughs that she has the open mouth, insert foot syndrome. She doesn’t like drama and wants to make everyone feel good while they’re at Heather’s. “Some people come in here regularly just to talk, and I love it.” One woman said that she comes in every week to see the “Abbey Show.”

Abbey was raised Catholic and says she still attends church at St. Edwards each week. “I really believe this is God’s plan for me, to interact with people and brighten their day each time they stop in. It makes me feel so good to know I can put a smile on their face and make their day.”

There’s a book called “The Fred Factor.” The author shows how a mailman named Fred having passion for his work and life turned an ordinary job into the extraordinary one. How reaching out and going the extra mile for people can not only bring happiness to others, but creates it for you too!

Abbey is a Fred.... she does an ordinary job in an extraordinary way. Anyone can be a Fred by doing each job to the best of their ability, therefore touching someone’s life along the way. Thank you, Abbey, for touching each person you come in contact with and being one of the Freds in this world.