Dennis Perry Smith

Dennis Perry Smith, son of Cannon Perry Smith and Elmo Yearsley Smith, passed away peacefully on November 26, 2025, while residing at the George E. Wahlen Ogden Veterans Home.

Dennis was born on September 30,1946 in Logan, Utah. At the age of 11, he moved with his family to Ventura, California, where he attended Anacapa Junior High, Buena High School (where he played basketball and tennis), Ventura College (where he was asked to play basketball, but chose to focus on art instead), and the Santa Barbara Art Institute. Dennis showed an early interest and aptitude for art. He excelled in his art classes in school and completed a rigorous correspondence course in figure drawing in his early teens.

It was at Ventura College that Dennis discovered his passion as a sculptor, first in wood and stone, and then in metal. However, his art training was interrupted by the Vietnam War. He enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps in 1966 for a three-year contract. In October 1967, he was deployed to Vietnam and sent immediately to the Marine combat base at Khe Sanh. The “Battle for Khe Sanh” began with enemy bombardment on the morning of January 20, 1968. The next 77 days included regular, heavy rocket and mortar attacks while the Marines were surrounded by an overwhelming enemy force. The Marines took many casualties but held the base with significant support from the U.S. Air Force. For their performance at Khe Sanh, Dennis’s unit received the Presidential Unit Citation. Based on his personal performance during his tour of duty in Vietnam, Dennis received the Navy Commendation Medal. In the citation, it states, “By his initiative, inspiring leadership and unfaltering devotion to duty, Sergeant Smith contributed significantly to the accomplishment of his unit’s mission and upheld the finest traditions of the Marine Corps and of the United States Naval Service.” But his military service came at great personal cost. It wasn’t until many years later that Dennis was diagnosed with severe post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and granted a 100% disability rating from the Veterans Administration.

Dennis’s family, career, and faith took him in several directions. In 1976, he married Karen Jane Lee in the Los Angeles Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They were later divorced. He also served for a couple of years as a police officer for the city of Hurricane, Utah. His military background was a great asset during this time. In his church, he was ordained a Seventy and fulfilled several assignments as a stake missionary.

Dennis’s passion for art likely saved his life, post-Vietnam. He was able to channel much of his internal turmoil into learning and producing what would become his signature metal sculpture technique. At the Santa Barbara Art Institute, he began welding steel and expressing his passion, his angst, and his hope through his art. In 1989, Dennis was asked to create the sculptures that were to become the Living Memorial Sculpture Garden (https://www.lmsgarden.org) on the northwestern slope of Mt. Shasta near the city of Weed in Siskiyou County, California. For the next 31 years, this project became Dennis’s labor of love. He lived and worked on the 136-acre site provided by the U.S. Forest Service and sponsored and maintained by the Kiwanis Club of Weed/Lake Shastina. Visitors came from all over the world to view the sculptures and ponder the impact of war on humanity.

In February 2021, Dennis suffered a stroke that paralyzed the left side of his body. As a result, he was no longer able to perform his work as an artist and caretaker of the Sculpture Garden. For the next two years, he lived in a care center near the VA hospital in Roseburg, Oregon. In March 2023, he moved to the George E. Wahlen Ogden Veterans Home in Ogden, Utah. Despite his physical limitations, Dennis’s mind remained sharp and active. He was an avid reader and a talented musician. He enjoyed visiting with family and friends and sharing his memories, as well as his concerns for the direction of our country. He especially disliked any man wearing a suit, white shirt, and tie because, “That is the uniform of those who sent us to Vietnam.”

Dennis is survived by his children, Tristan, Katrina (David) Hughes, Jesse, Ryan, and Brandon, his grandchildren, his brother, Rodney (Karen) Smith, and sisters, Dixie (Ken) Burt and Karen (Richard) Hauley. He was preceded in death by his daughter, Kellie Rachelle, his parents, and his sister, Judy (Wayne) Goodsell. Dennis was deeply loved by his family, including many nieces and nephews.

As a family, we want to express our gratitude to the amazing health care and hospice teams at the George E Wahlen Ogden Veterans Home. Their loving care for Dennis far exceeded the requirements of their jobs.

Now this gentle warrior has gone home. This tough Marine (Semper Fi, until we die) is in the healing arms of his Savior and the loving arms of family and friends who have gone before. He has no more physical or emotional limitations. We wonder . . . what he will create next?

A Celebration of Life will be held Saturday December 6, 2025 at 10:00 a.m. at Lindquist’s Layton Mortuary, 1867 N. Fairfield Rd., Layton, Utah. Family and friends may visit Saturday from 9:00 to 9:45 a.m. at the mortuary prior to the service.

Interment for Dennis will be held Saturday at 2:30 p.m. at the Logan Utah City Cemetery.