Denise Marlene Hanson

Denise Marlene Hanson of St. Mary’s Villa, Humboldt (formerly of LeRoy) passed peacefully with family by her side Wednesday, November 12th, at age of 59.

Denise was the youngest of 4 children born to Leslie & Lilly (nee Steffenson) at LeRoy, Sask.  Being the baby of the family, she had the nickname “Kid”.  She grew up on the farm where she loved to be outside, riding her pony Danny (often bareback), playing with the dogs (first Peppy, then Toby) & cats/kittens, biking, dressing up in her own version of outfits, listening to music (mostly country) and watching her tv shows.  Those shows evolved to soaps with Another World being the favourite along with the Beverly Hillbillies, Threes Company and Happy Days.  Happy Days influenced her well known nickname “Fonz”!

She started school in Special Education at Lanigan when she was 6 years old.  The first year she boarded with the Laskowski family near Drake, catching the bus with their kids to Lanigan.  The next few years she was at home, and her parents drove her 8 miles to catch a school bus to Lanigan. In 1980, a class started in LeRoy with 3 girls all close in age.  This was a real improvement.  Denise could catch the bus from home!  She was able to enjoy Mrs.Hancock’s creativity & heartwarming presence till 1987 when she turned 21. 

A big bonus for Denise in the late 70’s was when they got a cabin beside Frances Leitch at Marean Lake.  She loved the water and could float for hours down by the dock.  She enjoyed travelling with her parents to various places including Expo ’86 in Vancouver, Hornby Island, California, Hostfest in Minot and family reunions in Minnesota, Manitoba and Saskatchewan.  They moved into LeRoy in 1988. 

The VCR was a cherished invention for Denise.  She always had a digital watch to keep track of time when Another World came on to record it.  She went through a few VCR’s (she should have been a consumer tester) and stacks upon stacks of VHS tapes.  She had calendars too that she correctly x’d out each day.

In 1997, after Mom’s passing, she moved to Evergreen County Home in LeRoy.  It wasn’t a far move but huge change for Denise that she adapted to with the help of staff and home care (the girls) and residents like Aunt Carrie across the hall.  Linda filled a huge role being very special to Denise throughout her years there. Started her sayings, “really like you”, “you fat” in teasing and “you bunny rabbit” meaning special.  Here she continued to ask for more VHS tapes, loose leaf and pens to make all those notes and recordings.

Next big change was September of 2016, when she moved into Group Home 1 in Humboldt and spent time at Futuristic.  She quickly became well known for her antics and one liners.  Here her love of watching wrestling expanded finding others who shared her keen interest.  She found a new group of “the Girls” especially Leslie!  They all introduced her to new experiences, she especially loved eating at restaurants, shopping and dance parties. The bowling and swimming added to her previous experiences but Terri got her well beyond!  Even though Denise loved the water she was not fond of heights.  Together going up all those steps and down the waterslide was a big accomplishment.  We her family are so grateful to Leslie for your love and friendship to Denise and to the many more who are compassionate, caring, loving spirits that make Futuristic a treasured facility for so many.  Our deepest Thank You’s!

Declining health brought her to St. Mary’s Villa on February 6th, 2020, one month before Covid hit.  And once again she found special people who referred to her as “sweetheart“ and gave her special care showed by her little ponytails and bows in her hair.  We knew she was being well cared for.  The staff touched our hearts last week with all their thoughtfulness.

To all the staff, volunteers and families at Evergreen, Group Home 1, Futuristic and St. Mary’s Villa, our deep heartfelt Thank You’s.  You’re all amazing for the spirits you uplift.

Denise will be missed and lovingly remembered by her siblings: Lucy (Les) Gordon & family, Lars, Layne (Sam) & family Oliver & Cecilia; Chris (Gail) & family, Aaron (Bryan) & family, Ava & Rory, Tennille (Ryan) & family, Jovi & Rowan, Christine; Craig (Char) & family, Nick (Heidi); and several cousins. 

Denise was predeceased by her parents Leslie (1993) & Lilly (1997), grandparents Bob & Rachel (nee Ueland) Hanson, Chris & Hulda (nee Nielsen) Steffenson & special Uncle Allan.

A Celebration of Denise’s Life was held Friday, November 21st, 2025, at 2:00 pm led by Bev Trach. If you have a story, please share. Interment will follow at a later date.  If you wish, donations in Denise’s memory may be made to St. Mary’s Villa Foundation or Futuristic Industries.