Douglas Denys
“Being born with a congenital heart defect and the threat of an early death, Doug rose to a seemingly impossible excellence.
A bright light has been extinguished. We feel the loss of Dr. Douglas Denys: son, husband, father, friend, surgeon, adventurer, humanitarian, photographer, athlete, the list goes on and on…
Doug was born in Orem, Utah to Joyce and Fred Denys. He attended Orem High School, graduated summa cum laude from Utah State University and he attended the University of Utah Medical School where he graduated at the top of his class. Doug continued his adventures with his spouse, Sally Soderberg Denys, as they packed up and moved to Memphis, Tennessee for a two-year residency in general surgery and another four years in ENT/ Head and Neck Surgery. It was there that he made many lifelong friends who were his surgical teachers and fellow residents.
After finishing his residency, he moved back home to American Fork, Utah to practice where he and Sally raised three sons, Matthew, Dallen and Derek.
An Orem High cross country team member and a lifelong runner, Doug later authored a book, “Rhythm of a Runner,” where he told the story of his early diagnosed heart defect, and how it helped drive him to become an ultra-marathon runner. He was a Team U.S.A. triathlete, and he filled the life he was given to its absolute fullest. He competed in many events over the years, including the Boston marathon, the Leadville 100 and Wasatch Front 100 mile endurance runs; the World Triathlon Championship, the Antarctic marathon, the Marathon Des Sables (156 miles in the Sahara Desert), and the Ironman Triathlon.
Caring for people was a huge part of his life and something he loved. His profession allowed him to travel the world to do humanitarian service; repairing cleft palates and tumors of the head and neck. He researched poverty and provided financial and personal assistance for orphaned children to attend and graduate from school and rise above the conditions they had been born into.
But, running and medicine weren’t the only reasons Doug traveled the world. His early work as a sculptor and painter later combined with his love of animals led him to many exotic and remote locations around the world in search of rare species to document with photography. His various interests took him to the Galápagos Islands, Arctic circle, Namibia, Kenya, the Alaskan wilderness, Russia, Argentina, and the Amazon jungle, among many others.
In his book, he wrote “My malformed heart became my greatest blessing…my childhood visits to the hospital built a sense of urgency…I hoped for something different than a routine life.” The life he did lead, his accomplishments as a doctor, an artist, traveler, adventurer, athlete, humanitarian, father and friend…were anything but routine. Doug lived every day to its fullest.
He is survived by his wife Sally, three sons: Matthew, Dallen, and Derek, parents, Fred and Joyce, and two brothers, Larry and Damon.
We will always love you Douglas and you will forever be in our hearts.
Funeral services will be held on Friday, March 11, 2022 at 11:00 am at the Highland 20th Ward Chapel, 11605 North 6000 West. Family and friends may call on Thursday, March 10, 2022 from 6:00 to 8:00 pm at the church, and again on Friday morning from 9:30 to 10:30 at the church prior to services.
For those wishing to attend the services virtually, please use the following link: https://zoom.us/j/93200206529