Henry Sanders

Who is Henry Sanders?

Henry "Hank" Sanders is a Democratic member of the Alabama Senate, representing the 23rd District since 1983. He is the longest-serving chair of a legislative budget committee in Alabama, having first been named to Chair of the Senate Finance & Taxation Committee in January 1996 and serving in it for four consecutive terms. Hank "The Rock" Sanders is serving his eighth term in the Alabama Senate. He first received his nickname "The Rock" by his mother because of his solid, steady and reliable nature, and that nickname has been adopted as a slogan in his political campaigns for the Alabama Senate.

Sanders wrote and published a novel, "Death of a Fat Man," in 2004. Amazon's review states, "The book is full of wisdom and easy to read. In his novel, Hank shares the pain, suffering, and triumphs of struggles with obesity and imminent death. The 420-page book is written in vignettes, framed as short letters from an obese grandfather to a four- year-old granddaughter already showing signs of obesity. Hank says that he has a granddaughter like that in real life. The character in the book overcomes his severe obesity not through fad diets, but through paying attention to his body and soul. At the conclusion of the novel, the main character is still obese even though he has lost weight. He continues to struggle to lose more. He is at peace with himself because he has learned to resist the temptations that led to the extreme weight gain and caused him so much physical and emotional pain. Senator Sanders says, It is important that people understand they can defeat their obesity, or at least bring it under control. He did that in real life and in the novel- through meditation and through paying attention to how food makes him feel. When Hank started writing the book he could hardly walk. Even the short distance from the senate chamber to his office in the State House, or from his Selma law office to the parking lot, were extremely difficult. While he continued to struggle with arthritis after the publication of the novel, he moved around better" and subsequently went through a double knee replacement surgery. The surgery, performed at the Kirklin Clinic at the University of Alabama in Birmingham in 2008, was very successful, and Sanders now walks two miles daily. http://www.amazon.com/Death-Fat-Man-Hank-Sanders/dp/0975273302