Denise Annette White

Denise was born on December 24, 1948 in Penn Yan, New York.

Denise loved to travel and experience new places. She combined that with her love of education. Her work as a math teacher brought her to New York, Australia, Kansas City, and Minneapolis. Along the way she made deep connections with students and colleagues alike, one of those with Laurie, a fellow math teacher whom she married in May 2021 after many years together.

Denise was a prolific and published poet and author, gaining most of her inspiration from the nature she so loved to explore. The desert and mountains around Gold Canyon Arizona, the Oregon Coast and the Adirondacks in New York were particularly special places for her, but she also enjoyed her times spent in Paris, Hawaii, and Cape Cod.

Denise was preceded in death by her parents, Harry and Marcia White, and her grandniece Rebecca McIvor. She is survived by her wife Laurie Hayden, siblings Joel (Susan) White, Jacqueline (George White) White, and Rodney (Tom Brown) White. Nieces and nephews Alyssa (Dirk) McIvor, Seth (Ari Calderone) White, Penn (Elyse) White, Brian (Erica Stuhff) Holtz, Kyle (Katie) Holtz, and Sara (Dan) Krall. Grandnieces and nephews Abby, Hannah, Harper, Viloula, Julia, Alex, Audrey, Addie, Elliott, Grace, and Henry, as well as lifelong friends Joan Williamson, Cecelia Coleman, and Becky McCarty, and many other family and friends.

The family would like to thank the University of Minnesota Medical Center, specifically the fifth-floor oncology unit, for their excellent care of Denise over the last year. Her doctors, special nurses, nursing assistants, and supporting staff brought compassion and comfort to Denise and her family through every moment spent together. Special thanks to Chaplain Steph and nursing assistant Denise.