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| Jessenia Stidger Now: What Happened to the Below Deck Season 13 Deckhand? |
Jessenia Stidger has taken her maritime career well beyond her appearance on Bravo’s Below Deck Season 13, progressing from deckhand duties aboard Azul V to earning a 100-ton Master Captain’s Licence and taking on additional responsibilities at sea. With experience across 16 vessels, further maritime qualifications and a growing appetite for international travel, she has plenty going on beyond the cameras. And while reality television can make even a routine day on a yacht look like an Olympic event in managing difficult personalities, Jessenia has been building a career that requires considerably more than surviving awkward crew conversations.
Born and raised in Kaaawa, Hawaii, Jessenia developed her interests long before entering the yachting industry. Dancing was one of her earliest passions, particularly hula, which she began learning at just three years old. What started as a childhood interest gradually became an important part of her life, eventually helping her secure second place in a state talent competition. Clearly, she was comfortable performing long before a reality television crew started pointing cameras in her direction.
Jessenia attended James B. Castle High School from August 2014 and spent four years participating in varsity cheerleading. She also joined the Castle Dance Force, keeping her involved in the performing arts throughout her school years. After graduating in May 2018, she moved on to Colorado State University in January 2019, where she pursued a Bachelor of Arts in Interdisciplinary Liberal Arts alongside a minor in Sociology. She also became involved with the National Honor Society for Collegiate Leadership before completing her degree in May 2023.
Her early professional experience was hardly limited to hospitality. In January 2021, Jessenia began working as a mechanic at Jiffy Lube, M.C., LLC, staying there until November that year. She subsequently became a receptionist at Poudre Canyon Health and Rehabilitation Center before leaving in November 2022. From December 2022 to June 2023, she worked as a behavioural therapist at Prism Behavioral Solutions. It was quite a collection of experiences for someone who would eventually find herself working aboard luxury vessels, proving that a career path does not always resemble a tidy line on a CV.
Jessenia moved closer to the hospitality and maritime industries in 2023. She joined Green Valley Country Club as a bartender in June and began working as a yacht stewardess for Hornblower Cruises and Events two months later. She left the country club in January 2024 and subsequently moved on from her yacht stewardess position in April. Between December 2023 and June 2025, she also worked as an able-bodied deckhand at Centerline Logistics Corporation, gaining valuable experience in vessel operations.
Her maritime journey continued with FRS Clipper, where she took on a deck attendant position and continued developing her professional skills. Her appearance on Below Deck Season 13 introduced her to viewers as a deckhand aboard Azul V, the yacht featured in the season's Phuket, Thailand, setting. The role placed her within a busy crew environment where teamwork, communication and practical ability were essential. Getting along with colleagues is useful in any workplace, but when everyone shares a yacht, there is rather less opportunity to escape someone whose idea of a good conversation is an unnecessary argument.
Jessenia has also invested in the qualifications needed to progress beyond entry-level maritime work. In 2025, she completed several courses through the Maritime Institute, including First Aid and CPR, Personal Survival Techniques, Personal Safety and Social Responsibilities, and Basic Fire Fighting. These certifications added to her professional preparation and reflected her commitment to developing practical safety skills rather than relying solely on experience gained at sea.
In September 2025, she announced a particularly important milestone: becoming a captain after sitting five separate examinations. Her experience aboard 16 different vessels, including yachts and ferries, helped contribute to her achievement of a 100-ton Master Captain’s Licence. The qualification marked a significant step forward, opening the door to greater responsibility within the maritime industry. For anyone who remembers her primarily as a deckhand on television, the progression is a reminder that her career has continued moving long after the cameras stopped following her around.
Since October 2025, Jessenia has also been working as a chief stewardess aboard the motor yacht Thea Foss, adding another responsibility to her maritime experience. The combination of deckhand work, hospitality duties and captain's qualifications demonstrates the range of skills she has developed. Working on a vessel involves far more than enjoying the scenery and occasionally looking busy when guests walk past. It requires preparation, discipline and the ability to handle changing conditions, even when the day has other plans.
Away from work, Jessenia maintains an active presence on Instagram, where she has built a following of more than 8,100 followers, according to the information available in the supplied profile. Her posts offer glimpses of her professional life, travels and everyday interests. She also maintains a personal website featuring details about her background, academic journey and creative pursuits, including dancing and drawing. It gives people interested in her story a broader picture of her life beyond the familiar reality television format.
Jessenia's family remains an important part of that story. She has shared a close bond with her parents and her sister, Jasmine Stidger. Her father died in 2021 after battling cancer, a loss she has continued to acknowledge through personal tributes on occasions including his birthday and Father's Day. In March 2024, she reflected on wishing he could see how she and her sister were making him proud. Those messages suggest that, alongside her professional ambitions, keeping her father's memory alive remains meaningful to her.
Travel has become another way for Jessenia to stay connected to the adventurous spirit she associates with her family. After growing up in Hawaii, she eventually moved to California, where beaches and outdoor activities remain part of her lifestyle. Her travels have taken her well beyond the Pacific, including trips to Italy in May 2022, with visits to Rome, Pompeii and Lazio over the following two months. In September 2024, she visited Machu Picchu in Peru, adding one of the world's best-known historical sites to her travel experiences.
Her more recent adventures have covered an impressive range of destinations. In January 2026, Jessenia explored the beaches and ocean around Australia before taking in New Zealand's landscapes during the same month. In April, she travelled to Bali, Indonesia, where she enjoyed time surrounded by nature. Two months later, she visited Sardinia, the Mediterranean island known for its coastline and clear waters. Egypt followed in August 2026, giving her the opportunity to explore its history and cultural heritage, before she headed to Palma, Spain, in September for more time swimming and relaxing by the beach.
Her interests extend beyond ticking countries off a travel list. Jessenia enjoys surfing, camping, hiking and skydiving, while waterfalls and forest drives are also among the experiences she seeks out whenever possible. Her love of the outdoors appears to be a consistent part of her lifestyle, whether she is exploring somewhere new or enjoying a quieter day away from work. She also devotes plenty of affection to her beloved dog and makes time for her friendships, from travelling together to catching up over conversations about life.
In my opinion, Jessenia's story is one of the more interesting career developments to come out of Below Deck. Reality television naturally encourages viewers to focus on crew dynamics, awkward exchanges and whatever drama happens to unfold before the next charter. But her progress shows what happens when someone uses an opportunity on screen as only one part of a much bigger professional journey. Earning a captain's licence is not a minor achievement, and gaining experience across different vessels requires commitment that cannot be captured in a few entertaining episodes.
Her background is also refreshingly varied, from dancing and university studies to mechanical work, behavioural therapy and hospitality. Not every job needs to fit a master plan from the beginning, and hers certainly did not. The important thing is that she kept developing new skills. Her story is a reminder that the most compelling update sometimes happens after the cameras leave.
For now, Jessenia Stidger continues to build her maritime career while making room for travel, family, friends and outdoor adventures. Her journey from Below Deck deckhand to licensed captain gives viewers a reason to follow what comes next, particularly as she takes on more responsibility at sea.
Whether she eventually pursues further captaincy opportunities or continues balancing different maritime roles remains to be seen. What do you think of Jessenia's progress since joining Below Deck Season 13? Are you more interested in her captaincy journey or her life exploring the world? Share your thoughts and let us know what you would like to see from her next.