Casandra Kelley Henderson

Casandra K. Henderson died at the age of 103 on October 2, 2023. The matriarch of a four-generation family, Casandra, best known as Cas to friends and Mimi to family, left a wonderful legacy of cherished memories.

Born in Austin, MN, in 1920 to parents Joseph and Fae Kelley, Cas attended grade school in Austin and Albert Lea, MN. After a family move to IA, Cas graduated Ft. Dodge High School ’37, Junior College ‘39 and then attended Iowa State Teacher’s College, presently known as the University of Northern Iowa.

In 1941, 3 weeks before the attack on Pearl Harbor, Cas married George R. Henderson, a native of NY. George was immediately drafted into the Navy, leading the newlyweds to 4 years of naval housing from San Mateo and San Francisco, CA to Champaign, IL, while George served as a troop transportation specialist.

George’s naval service concluded at the end of WWII in 1945 and the couple began their private family life. They first returned to George’s hometown of Brooklyn, NY, and shortly thereafter enjoyed family residences in Andover, MA, and Ramsey, NJ, before retiring to Sarasota in 1969. The couple, who met on a blind date and went on to have a wonderful life together, survived the hardships and challenges of war, raised 2 daughters, and celebrated a marriage of 35 years until George’s death in 1976.

Widowed at a relatively young age, Cas continued her banking career and is best remembered as the Branch Manager of Coast Federal Savings & Loan on Longboat Key for nearly 20 years before her retirement in 1990. She showered her banking clients with attention, redefining the meaning of personal banking.

Retirement did not slow Cas down. She kept busy with community activities, volunteering at St. Boniface Episcopal Church, semi-training her dear puppies, Honey Babe and Gracie and studying family genealogy.

She was a diehard Tampa Bay Buccaneers fan, cheering for the team whether they won or lost. Year round, she could be seen driving around town with her Bucs’ flag flapping high above her bright red Buick.

Cas/Mimi’s love of family enriched her long and happy life. She enjoyed supporting activities of her grandchildren such as Stanford football and the Kiltie Band of Riverview High. She thoroughly enjoyed holidays like St. Patrick’s Day with family and took road trips to vacation in North Carolina with them and would fly to the West Coast to see family in CA.

Cas is survived by 2 daughters: Sandee (Gary) Johnson of Mission Viejo, CA, and Barbara (Harry/Hap) Haskins of Sarasota, FL; 4 grandchildren: Kim (Mark) Looft of Scottsdale, AZ, Kelley (Steve) Schamel of Cato de Caza, CA, Tracey (Doug) Sieg of Summit, NJ, and Jon (Alyssa) Haskins of Sarasota, FL; 12 great-grandchildren: Macy, Kyle and Savannah Looft, Kaycee and Campbell Schamel, Taylor, Ashley, Cameron and Abbey Sieg, Hayden, Hank and Casandra Haskins and an abundance of friends.

Services will be held on Thursday, October 26, 2023, at 4:00 pm at St. Boniface Episcopal Church on Siesta Key. Interment of ashes will follow at a later date in Oakland Cemetery, Austin, MN.

The family thanks the many friends for their love and support of Cas, particularly as she battled the progression of Alzheimer’s disease.

In lieu of flowers, contributions in Cas’ memory may be made to the Alzheimer’s Association to advance research and the fight to end this disease and related dementia @ act.alz.org.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.palmsrobartsfuneralhome.com for the Henderson family.