Community activist.
Born at Miniota on 17 September 1921 to Esther Climina “Mina” O’Hara (1885-1977) and John James “Jim” Henderson (1882-1949), she grew up in the family’s apartment above the Canadian Pacific Railway station where her father was a station agent and telegrapher. She demonstrated her musical talents with the piano from a young age. She was the Sunday School organist at Miniota from the age of 10 and shared organist duties with her sister Jean until graduating high school and leaving home in 1939.
She attended the Toronto Conservatory of Music from 1939 to 1940, studying piano and theory. She earned her Associate Teaching degree (ACCM) in piano and theory, and prepared for her Licentiate piano degree (LRCM), but could not take the exam after the Second World War began because examiners could not come from England to evaluate her professional concert performance. She moved to Shoal Lake to be with her parents and taught music there from 1940 to 1943, as well serving as organist of St. Paul's Anglican Church.
In addition to furthering her skills and opportunities in the 1940s, she worked at different positions: part time as a volunteer at the Shoal Lake Ration Board office; as secretary at the Shoal Lake Ag Rep office; at Brandon Musical Supply after moving to Brandon; and then at Wright and Wightman Jewellers. In September 1946, she moved to Virden to work for her brother-in-law, Vern Andrew, at Andrew Agencies, and also did the books for the newly formed Virden Credit Union. Meanwhile, she served as organist at St. Mary's Anglican Church in Brandon (1944-1946) and at St. Paul's United Church in Virden (1947-1949). She married William Talmage “Bill” Carefoot in 1949 and they went on to have three children. She and her husband lived and worked on the farm in the Pacific District until October 1972 when the family moved to Virden.
In later years she again offered her services as organist to St. Paul's in Virden and St. Mary's in Brandon. She played for more than 70 Christmas candlelight services during her lifetime. She was also involved in the Virden Music and Arts Music Festival until the late 1970s, serving on the syllabus committee, as President and Secretary at various times, and as the official accompanist for 29 years. Together with Bernice McDonald, she organized the choir called The Naturals in 1974, which gave concerts for a number of years, donating the proceeds to community projects. She was the accompanist for the school festival and Christmas concert choirs, the Virden Collegiate Choir, the “Broadway the Audway” group, and a St. Paul's Church quartet.
One of her greatest passions was the project she and her husband became involved in, with others, to save the Virden Auditorium from demolition. She became the Secretary of the Restoration Committee, and later, when the Theatre Board was formed at the time of the re-opening in 1983, became its Secretary, combining it with the treasurer's duties the following year. She was a Life Member of the Theatre Board, serving for almost 30 years until her retirement in 2011. A highlight for her was attending the 100th anniversary of the Virden Auditorium, now called the Aud Theatre, in February 2012.
Other occupations included a part-time job at the Fort la Bosse School Division secretary-treasurer's office until 1970, working at the Empire-Advance newspaper from 1971 to 1979 and for the Virden Library until 1986, as Senior Librarian in the last four years. She also wrote many articles for the Brandon Sun and Winnipeg newspapers. Community activities included membership in the South Circle Community Club while on the farm, the St. Paul's United Church Women’s group, and the Health Auxiliary of Virden. She was a member of a lawn bowling club in the 1970s, began golfing while wintering in Arizona, and was a member of the Virden Golf Club.
A lover of history, she compiled the Virden Festival history in 1982 and the St. Mary's Anglican Church history in 1986. She assembled the history for the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 8 (Virden) as it prepared for its 60th anniversary. As the keeper of the family stories of all four branches of her ancestry, she compiled the history of the Carefoot, Henderson, O'Hara, and McLean families after she got her first computer in the 1980s. The resulting genealogy at the time of her death included more than 2,500 names and stretched back to the 1700s. She was a nominee for the Woman of Distinction Award, and in 2011 was presented with the Melvin Jones Fellow for Dedicated Humanitarian Services by the Lions Club International Foundation.
She died at Virden on 3 June 2012 and was buried in the Virden Cemetery.
Birth registration [Gladys Isabel Henderson], Manitoba Vital Statistics.
Obituary, Winnipeg Free Press, 9 June 2012.
Esther Climina “Mina” O’Hara Henderson, FindAGrave.
This page was prepared by Lois Braun.
Page revised: 27 January 2026
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