(CMR) Esther Henderson (54), the vibrant scuba diver who worked at Stingray City as an underwater videographer and photographer for years has passed away. Esther passed away on 25 February, 2022, in Miami after a brief struggle with metastatic breast cancer.
Esther Henderson was born in Lvov, Ukraine, which was then a part of the Soviet Union, to George and Luba Karanja (now Semeronne) in 1967. She was the youngest of three daughters.
Esther's parents moved the family to Nairobi, Kenya, her father's country at the age of three. After her father's passing, she moved to Stockholm with her mother and two sisters and acquired Swedish citizenship. Following high school in Stockholm and training as a manicurist/pedicurist and practical nurse, she settled in London at the age of 22.
Having become an accomplished scuba diver and PADI DiveMaster, Esther emigrated to the Cayman Islands in 1999. She worked for several years at Stingray City as an underwater videographer and photographer. One of her pleasures there was feeding the nurse sharks and a notorious green moray named “Psycho.”
Esther married Alexander (“Alex”) Gray Henderson on September 28, 2001, at Grand Turk, Turks & Caicos Islands. The couple then settled for a time in Vancouver, Canada, where her husband was sitting as a Judge of the Supreme Court of British Columbia. Their daughter, Tanya, was born the following year.
In June 2003, the family moved to the Cayman Islands to enable Alex to sit as a permanent, full-time Judge of the Grand Court. Esther resumed her role as a Stingray City videographer and photographer. Many will remember her enthused and humourous briefings to groups of tourists. Towards the end of her life, she became a driving instructor, a job she relished.
Esther's outlook was characterized by infectious optimism and constant good cheer, resulting in an extensive collection of friends from all walks of life.
She is survived by her husband, Alex, daughter, Tanya, four stepchildren, and three grandchildren, all of whom will remember her with great fondness and love.
- Fascinated
- Happy
- Sad
- Angry
- Bored
- Afraid
