Cay Enns

November 20, 1969 – March 6, 2020

Cay passed away peacefully in her childhood home in Rustic Canyon following an extended illness. She was born at St. John’s Hospital and raised in Pacific Palisades.

Cay attended St. Matthew’s Parish School and Brentwood School. She loved athletics and excelled in them. She was a two-time CIF Champion in volleyball (1985, 1986) and All League in volleyball (1986) and basketball (1987), and received the Faculty Award, an honor given to a student who had grown most as a person and as a student. She graduated from the University of Colorado in 1991 where she majored in molecular, cellular and developmental biology.

Cay occupied herself during the summers by being a camp counselor at St. Matthew’s Parish. She also was a member of the National Charity League (Coronet Debutante 1987). Cay was musical and started playing the piano at an early age, studying with the wonderful Gertrude Lehman, who also taught her two older brothers. This started a progression of many musical recitals at the Bel Air Bay Club.

Cay joined Brentwood School as a faculty member in 1997 and taught physics, astronomy, biology and senior seminar. She was especially proud to serve as Class Dean for the classes of 2004, 2009, 2014 and 2016. Cay loved her students whom she called her “ducklings” and took pride in the relationships she built over the years. She was known for bringing puppies on campus prior to exams to reduce student “jitters.” A former student, Jasper Grey, wrote: “Your laughter, shenanigans, intelligence, kindness and heart were the highlight of thousands of lives that you touched, including mine.”

Cay’s greatest passion was exploring and photographing the world, which included South Africa, Australia, Japan, Iceland and Europe. Traveling gave her the opportunity to go diving, swim with the sharks and other sea creatures, and go surfing. Her dream was to return to Kona to swim with the dolphins. She compiled photography books after returning from her trips revealing the unique vision behind her beautiful blue eyes.

Cay always wanted to experience weightlessness, particularly because she taught both astronomy and physics. She knew that a zero gravity encounter would equip her to answer many of her students’ questions. Her call to space started in 2003 where she attended a luncheon with astronaut Jon McBride who told Cay that one can gain two and a half inches in height after two weeks of zero gravity. In October 2015, Cay took the experience of a lifetime and came back with a photo of herself floating in space. She also visited NASA where she saw a Saturn V rocket with a fuel tank the size of Brentwood’s gym and met Al Worden, an astronaut who traveled to the moon with only 70 K of computer memory on his ship.

Cay was dynamic, strong willed and known for her tenacity, sense of humor, impeccable integrity and generosity.

Cay was predeceased by her father, Harold B. Enns, M.D. (F.R.C.P.)(c), and is survived by her mother, Jean, and brothers, Gregory M. Enns, M.D. (Christa), Lionel N. Enns, Ph.D. (Amy), husband, Nigel Agravante Stewart; nieces: Sophie Enns, Macallan Enns-Ford, Tallulah (Hal) Enns-Ford and nephew: Tobey Enns. And numerous cousins. All are devastated by her loss.

A celebration of life will be held on Saturday, November 20, at 2 p.m. at St. Matthew’s Parish in Pacific Palisades. In lieu of flowers, donations in Cay’s name may be made to LACBA Abuse Programs, Dr. Susan Love Foundation, Brentwood School and St. Matthew’s Parish School Science Programs.