Slain Mastic Beach mother saves four lives through organ donation

A mother of three who Suffolk police said was savagely beaten to death in a jealous rage by her boyfriend has saved four lives through organ donation.

LiveOnNY, which oversees and coordinates organ donation in the greater New York area, confirmed that 41-year-old Cheray Jenkins of Mastic Beach donated her heart, liver and both kidneys after she succumbed to severe head injuries at Long Island Community Hospital on Valentine’s Day.

Two days earlier, about 6:20 p.m. on Feb. 12, Jenkins’ domestic partner, Duntrell Thomas, 30, flew into a jealous rage and accused the nurse’s aide of being romantically involved with a man who lived in the Mastic Beach home where Jenkins and Thomas were also temporarily living, according to Suffolk District Attorney Raymond Tierney.

“Thomas allegedly banged on the front door of the home, and when the other male resident opened the door, Thomas entered the house and saw Jenkins lying on the couch,” Tierney said in statement released to the media. ” “Thomas accused the man and Jenkins of being together and allegedly threatened to shoot him.”

“Thomas then began to violently punch Jenkins in the face and head while she lay on the couch as she pleaded with Thomas to stop,” Tierney added.

The vicious attack continued as Thomas allegedly pulled Jenkins off the couch, and onto the hardwood floor, where he allegedly punched Jenkins in the face and then stomped on her face with his foot, authorities said. At the hospital, Jenkins was diagnosed with intracranial hemorrhage and received an emergency decompressive craniectomy, but never regained consciousness.

Thomas was indicted this week on a second-degree murder charge, as well as other offenses related to the attack. He pleaded not guilty at his arraignment before Acting Supreme Court Justice Richard Horowitz.

“We extend our deepest condolences to Cheray’s family and loved ones. Our thoughts and prayers are with them as they navigate this difficult time.” said Leonard Achan, president and CEO of LiveOnNY, noting that the four patients who received Cheray’s organs are between the ages of 30 and 70 years old.

The organ recipients live in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Ohio.

Devoted ‘Momma’

Jenkins leaves behind three children, aged 19 and younger, including her eldest daughter Jakara “Kara” Canty of Bay Shore, who has established a GoFundMe page to help raise money for her mother’s funeral services.

Titled “Honoring Cheray Jenkins’ Loving Legacy,” the page details the life of a woman who was dedicated to her family.

“She always felt like she had to be strong for everybody help everybody out and set her pain aside,” Canty wrote on the GoFundMe page. “Even when she was struggling, she would still give somebody her last few bit of dollars to help the next person out, and still make a way for herself.”

Canty noted that Jenkins was a dedicated partner to Thomas, putting his health above her own.

“And it still wasn’t enough for him, and for him to still be living and ok with that, as well as having a nerve to plead not guilty shows that you had no remorse for what [he has] done to her to her kids to her family to her friends,” Canty vented on the GoFundMe page, which so far has raised $6,175 from 120 donations.

You can click here or below to contribute to the GoFundMe page for Jenkins’ children.

Canty said she is now responsible for her two younger siblings, both of whom have special needs. In a message to her mother, she assured her that her younger two children would be “safe and okay.”

“Hey momma, I just want you to know that I love you and you didn’t deserve that at all. I’m gonna miss the laughs and the play fighting and everything about you … Until we meet again…I love you️”

Funeral services upcoming

Funeral services for Jenkins are Tuesday, March 4, at Rose Funeral Home, located at 1705 Fifth Ave. in Bay Shore, from 1 to 3 p.m.

Thomas, who was combative with officers and spat on one cop during his arrest processing at the Sixth Precinct, is due back in court on March 20. He faces 25-years-to-life in prison if convicted of the murder charge.

_{Top photos: GoFundMe}