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Quenchers Bar Worker Survives Near-Fatal Shooting: 'I Don't Get No Sleep'

By Mina Bloom | November 17, 2016 12:15pm | Updated on November 18, 2016 11:45am
 Henry Austin, 41, was shot leaving work a few weeks ago.
Henry Austin, 41, was shot leaving work a few weeks ago.
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Quenchers/Facebook; Courtesy of Henry Austin

LOGAN SQUARE — Just a few months after getting a steady job, Henry Austin was shot while driving on Lake Shore Drive.

On Oct. 28 around 1:30 a.m., the 41-year-old was driving his white conversion van home from Quenchers Saloon, where he had recently gotten a job as a security guard and a cook, when someone shot him in his face, police said.

Austin was taken to Northwestern Hospital in critical condition. He spent six days in the hospital undergoing multiple surgeries, including a tracheotomy. Now he's at home recovering and waiting for more surgeries, but the physical and emotional pain lingers.

"I don't ever get no sleep, really, because I always think about it. It's real difficult," said Austin, a lifelong South Side resident and the father of eight children. "But I'm waking up every day."


Henry Austin, 41, with his now-14-year-old son, Henry Jr. [Provided]

Quenchers was one of Austin's first stable jobs.  Being a ward of the state and living in a group home made finding steady work difficult in his youth, but he had finally overcome them — only to become a shooting victim.

Austin said he was not the intended target of the shooting. That night, another man was shot on the Eisenhower Expy. just 10 minutes after Austin was shot. 

Police said the motive of the shooting that wounded Austin and was unknown. An investigation is ongoing.

"I know it ain't have nothing to do with me. I'm sure of it. I was just coming home from work," he said.

As Austin's recovery continues, the staff at Quenchers is raising money toward his medical bills, which have reached $100,000. That amount will only go up: Austin is scheduled to have surgery on his hand, which was also hit by bullets.

Over the weekend, the bar at 2401 N. Western Ave. hosted a fundraiser for Austin, raising $3,500 through beer and liquor sales and an auction, according to Austin's co-worker, James Decker.

"He's a gigantic teddy bear," Decker said of Austin. "He's openly kind and generous with his time and energy. He's hardworking and attentive. He's got exactly what you want in a co-worker."

Austin was overcome with gratitude when he learned about the fundraiser.

"I've had friends that I've known for longer than the Quenchers family that could help me, but people would rather see you down and out than help you," he said. "The Quenchers family ... they're showing me what a friend is supposed to be like."

Despite the shooting, Austin said he's not bitter or even angry. Instead, he's anxious to get back to taking care of his kids and returninng to work, where he feels a sense of belonging.

"It takes more effort to be mad about something," Austin said. "I'm trying to get past [this], come to terms with it. There's nothing I can do  about it."

Donations toward Austin's medical bills can be made by visiting the bar at Quenchers.

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