Denise Arlene Siemens

Our beloved mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, sister, and friend, Denise Arlene Siemens, passed away peacefully on Thursday, August 13, 2026, surrounded by her daughters as she made her transition from this life into eternity and into the loving arms of her Savior.

Denise was born on July 8, 1935, in Lethbridge, Alberta, to Herbert Olaf Birkness and Lucille Mary Elizabeth McIlveen. She grew up in the small community of Cayley, where her father managed the local grain elevator. She was blessed with a sister, Daryl, and a brother, Bryan, both of whom she adored. Denise loved the simplicity and community of her childhood in Cayley and remained deeply connected to it throughout her life. She returned for every class reunion she could, cherishing the friendships and memories of those formative years.

From an early age, Denise developed a love of music. She studied piano throughout her youth and became an accomplished pianist and organist. She taught piano and organ for many years and served as a ward or stake organist for more than 60 years. When the Calgary Temple was dedicated in 2012, Denise was asked to play the organ during the dedicatory ceremony—something she was honoured to do. Music was one of the many ways she quietly served and blessed the lives of others.

After graduating from Cayley High School, Denise attended the University of Edmonton, where she earned a Bachelor's Degree in Elementary Education. She taught elementary school for four years in Edmonton, Toronto, and Honduras.

Denise then met and married Morris Scotty Arnott, a native of Scotland. Together they raised three daughters—Danielle, Shannon, and Heidi, and had many wonderful years together. Their family was at the very centre of their lives.

In 1962, Denise and Scotty welcomed missionaries of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints into their home and were baptized. From that moment forward, the restored gospel of Jesus Christ became the foundation of Denise's life. Her faith was never merely something she believed; it was something she lived. She served wherever she was needed, throughout the church and her community, and spent much of her life quietly looking for ways to help, encourage, teach, and lift others.

Denise later married Werner (Vern) Siemens on August 17, 1990. Through that marriage, she gained another family to love, and she embraced them wholeheartedly. The best years of their married life together were spent on their beloved acreage in DeWinton, Alberta. Denise particularly loved hosting her family at her home and riding her horses in the open fields on their property. After 24 years of marriage, Vern passed away in 2015, and in her indomitable way, Denise carried on with faith.

Denise was an accomplished and remarkably capable woman. Over the course of her career, she worked as an Avon sales manager, a distributor and leader with Vanda Cosmetics, and for 16 years as a realtor. For the final six years of her very successful professional career, she and a partner built their own real estate company, Cornerstone Properties. The closely knit staff all remained friends for the rest of her life.

But Denise’s greatest accomplishments were never found on a résumé. Denise's family was the great joy of her life. She loved her three daughters fiercely and unconditionally. She was blessed with eight grandchildren through her daughters and, through her marriage to Vern, gained two additional children and five grandchildren whom she loved as her own. In the final years of her life, she was blessed with 18 great-grandchildren. She treasured every one of them and they adored their Gigi.

Denise also had a remarkable appetite for life. She was adventurous, energetic, and curious about the world around her. She loved downhill skiing, snowshoeing, hiking, and traveling. For years she belonged to a hiking group and remained active well into her later years. At age 65, Denise completed a five-week trek across Nepal. At 75, she climbed Mount Kilimanjaro. These adventures were more than impressive physical accomplishments—they reflected something fundamental about Denise. She never stopped being curious. She never stopped learning. And she never stopped saying yes to life.

Travel was one of her greatest passions. Over the years, she visited every continent and explored countries and cultures throughout the world. She was fascinated by people—their customs, their histories, their stories, and their ways of life. Whether hiking in Norway, China, British Columbia, or to Machu Picchu, she approached the world with wonder and enthusiasm.

Another great passion was family history. Denise spent countless hours researching her ancestors and finding the stories of those who came before her. Her love of family extended backward through generations as well as forward to her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. In 2019-2020, she served as a full-time Family History missionary in Lehi, Utah. She was also a natural emissary of the Savior, which was evident in the way she treated people. Through her example, kindness, and testimony, she helped introduce others to the restored gospel, and a number of them ultimately chose to be baptized.

Denise's life was characterized by several qualities that seemed to define her: faith, service, curiosity, courage, vitality, and an extraordinary interest in other people. She wanted to learn, to explore, to serve, and to make a difference. She remembered people. She listened to them. She encouraged them. And she had a remarkable ability to make people feel that they mattered.

The impact she had on others became especially evident at her 90th birthday celebration last year. More than 400 people from the many chapters of her life gathered to celebrate her. They came from different places, different periods of her life, and different circles of friendship, but they shared something in common: Denise had touched their lives in personal and sometimes everlasting ways. That was the greatest measure of her life.

Denise lived 91 years, but she did not simply accumulate years, she filled them. She filled them with faith and family, music and service, mountains and travel, learning and laughter, friendships and memories. Denise lived with an open heart and an open mind, and she left the world better because she had been part of it.

She is survived by her daughters, Danielle (Bob) Freeze, Shannon Arnott, and Heidi Gedlaman; her step-son, Craig (Suzanne) Siemens and her step-daughter, Elaine (Duncan) Cox; her beloved 13 grandchildren and 18 great-grandchildren; her sister, Daryl Hamilton; her sister-in-law, Reta Birkness, and numerous other family members and friends who loved her dearly.

We will miss her more than words can express. We will miss her stories, her laughter, her curiosity, her strength, her music, her example, and most of all, the love she gave so freely. But we take comfort in knowing that our mother’s faith was not simply a part of her life—it was the foundation of it. She believed in Jesus Christ. She believed in eternal families. She believed that life continues beyond the grave.

And so, while our hearts are heavy, we can imagine Denise doing what she always did when when embarking on a new adventure: moving forward with faith, optimism, and wonder—ready to see what comes next. We love you, Denise. We will miss you. And we will carry your legacy forward with us until we meet again.

A Celebration of Denise's extraordinary life will be held at the Foothills Stake Centre of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (30 Everstone Blvd SW, Calgary, Alberta) on Saturday, August 29, 2026, 11:00 a.m. with a Visitation with the family from 9:30 a.m. - 10:45.

A livestream of the service will be available at this Link.

Should you feel inclined, please donate to one of Denise's two favourite charities: www.ldsphilanthropies.org or www.rowanhouse.ca or a charity of your choice.