DENZEY, MARY ELIZABETH (ELSA) After a long and joy filled life, Elsa Denzey passed away on April 9, 2019, at the age of 95.
Born at home in Sliema, Malta on July 9, 1923 to a close knit family, she was the 10th child of 14 brothers and sisters to Giovanni and Theresa Bencini. She grew up during WWII and was present during the siege of Malta where she experienced many hardships and was in the population awarded the Maltese Cross for bravery. At the end of the war she met and married Lieutenant Commander Trevor Denzey and moved to England and subsequently Toronto, Canada.
This incredibly talented woman was an accomplished painter and color expert. She put these talents to work producing extraordinary embroideries with exceptional skill learned from Italian nuns when she was just a child. During her life she taught embroidery to many of Toronto’s residents and had an exhibition known as Silken Threads in 2004. In addition, she is best known for her devotion to the teaching known as the Fourth Way, she was a seminal influence in founding the Gurdjieff Foundation of Toronto: Society for Traditional Studies, and devoted her skills as a pianist to make a substantial contribution to the teaching by working with many musicians from all over the world in a series of seminars exploring how to accompany sacred dance. At 75 years old, she recorded a CD of her remarkable playing of the Gurdjieff/deHartman repertoire.
Elsa adored her family and leaves behind three daughters, Nella, Fiona and Nicola, whom she supported and helped all her life after the early death of her husband. She is remembered also by her seven grandchildren (Jeremy, Andra, Jonathon, Natasha, Danielle, Lola and Isobel) and 3 great-grandchildren (Zoey, Riley and Raven). She will be greatly missed not only by her family, but by the many people she touched and helped to find the sacred in themselves.
A service will be held for Elsa this Sunday, April 14th at 2:00 p.m., Enoch Turner Schoolhouse, 106 Trinity Street, Toronto.