Ester Krebs was born in McVeytown, Mifflin County, Pennsylvania.  At the age of 13, her family moved to Pottstown, Pennsylvania and she became a member of Coventry church that same year.  In 1920 she went to college and studied nursing. In the evenings during this time, she also took night classes on Christian Education to prepare herself for missionary work. Four years later in August of 1924, she was appointed to serve overseas.  

Esther left Pottstown quickly after graduation. She visited her cousin, Edwin Keller and family. She also met with Isaiah Oberholtzer and the Walter Heisey family who, at the close of their furlough, we're returning to China. Esther joined them. She was invited to assist a Chinese public health nurse in her clinic and visit homes, learning to communicate in their foreign language and serve the Chinese people's medical needs in Peking. 

In 1925 her activities in the hospital began to increase. A rag-tag army was gathered and fighting against the governor in her area of China. This of course brought an influx of wounded people to the hospital she was working in. At some point in 1928, Esther was informed that her parents were ill, so she arrived in Denver City where her father was. In 1929 Esther returned to Bellevue Hospital School of Nursing as a supervising instructor in surgical nursing. Many years later, in 1964 Esther retired to her home in Berks County, Pennsylvania.