Clayton Randall Henderson

Clayton R. Henderson, a loving husband, devoted father, and proud Marine veteran passed away peacefully on 12/12/2025 with his wife and children by his side. He bravely fought Colorectal Cancer since 2021.

Clayton was born on February 17, 1974 in Walnut Creek, CA to Daniell D. Henderson and Annelise Lenz Drake. He very much enjoyed growing up in Montanna with his younger brother Collin, and would speak very highly of his childhood and often spoke about returning to the West for retirement. Clayton was a Montanna boy at heart and loved the mountains, hunting, fishing, and generally a slower pace of life. He graduated 2nd in his class from Manhattan High School in 1992 (with a whopping 32 students in his class). Knowing Clayton and his competitive nature, coming in second really got under his skin. After graduation he decided to go out and see the world and attended college 2,203 miles away at George Washington University in Washington, D.C. While at GW Clayton enjoyed being the captain of his rugby team, while majoring in Criminal Justice and obtaining his BA in 1996. Not stopping his education there, Clayton continued to challenge himself and went on to obtain a JD, from Vanderbilt School of Law in 1999. After law school Clayton did what any young budding attorney would do – he joined the United States Marine Corps. Captain Henderson turned down a Jag position and became an Infantry Officer, where his Montanna shooting skills really came into play. He honed his marksmanship skills during the next four years. More specifically when he was deployed with Task Force 58 in support of Operation Enduring Freedom and participated in the initial invasion into Afghanistan after 9/11. Clayton loved his time serving in the Corps and followed in the footsteps of his Granddad Doug and Grandmother Betty, who had also served in the Marines. Many of his closest friends are from the time he served. He loved retelling the stories of the guys and their time on ship. Those lifelong friendships were so important to him. Clayton learned many valuable skills during his time in the military that he often applied to his professional career and personal life, such as patience, honor, and discipline. One of his favorite all-time Marine sayings is that “Pain is weakness leaving the body,” which he would often comment if one of the kids were to start complaining about a fictitious injury. He always committed himself fully to any task he was presented with – a true rule follower, he believed in doing things right the first time and often led by example in all areas of his life. This truly made him such a valuable leader in the Marines, his time at Nationwide, and in our family.

In early 2002 one of Clayton’s close law school friends and his wife introduced Clayton to Amy. After seeing the requested pictures of each other Clayton received the green light to pursue, and in pure Clayton fashion he did just that. He sent an e-mail that simply said, “Hi my name is Clayton and I’m from Manhattan……Montana and I like long walks on the beach.” Well, that did it, his fun loving personality, the humor, thoughtful letters and long hours on the phone eventually won Amy’s heart. After getting out of the Marines Clayton relocated to Boston where they eventually got married in 2005. While in Boston, he began his law career after passing the bar, and worked as a Litigation Associate for McGovern & Ganem, PC for four years. During that time, their daughter Chloe was born and they could not be happier. After being pursued by Nationwide Insurance, Clayton moved his little family to Lewis Center, OH. It was hard to leave MA, but Ohio proved to be a wonderful place to raise a family. Soon Chiara joined her sister in 2010, followed by Caleb in 2012. While at Nationwide, Clayton climbed the professional ladder and was VP, P & C Claims Legal from 5/2020-5/2023. His most recent job title was Senior Vice President of Operations, Excess & Surplus, Speciality and Commercial.

Clayton’s professional career was extremely important to him, but his role as husband and father were the roles he valued more than anything. Nothing was higher on his list than his family. He was such an amazing husband who inspired laughter, and who also had the best laugh that could be heard throughout the house. He and Amy had such a fun loving, respectful, relationship and were each other’s best friend. She will miss his cooking, going on walks, traveling, watching Oak Island (will they ever find the treasure?), going to the farm markets and his visual spatial skills (aka – packing the car) Clayton cherished his role of “Daddy/Dad” he was always present, available, and supportive of his children. Chloe, Chiara, and Caleb were his pride and joy, they are his legacy that will continue to live on. They will miss his cooking, dad jokes, fishing at Briarwood, traveling, playing in the pool, playing with the dogs, going to the movies, shopping and all of his non-stop embarrassing questions that he would pester them with.

Outside of his dedication to work and family, Clayton found joy in life’s simple pleasures. He loved to watch cooking shows, improve his golf ability (he needed all the help he could get), swim in his beloved pool, fishing, playing hours, and hours, and hours of video games, watching and rewatching old movies and delighting family and friends with his spot-on movie quotes. Known for his quick wit and clever comebacks, he could always bring a smile or a laugh at just the right moment. He will be greatly missed by his family, friends, and co-workers, life will not be the same without him. Clayton is now no longer in pain and can finally be free. We love you forever and always.

A Celebration of Life will be held on Saturday, January 3, 2026 from 3-6 pm at Schoedinger Dublin. 5980 Perimeter Drive, Dublin, OH 43017.

In lieu of flowers please consider donating in Clayton’s honor to the:

Columbus Kobacker House at https://giving.ohiohealth.com

Colorectal Cancer Alliance:

https://colorectalcancer.org