Frederick "Fred" Mathewson Denny

Frederick “Fred” Mathewson Denny passed away peacefully with his family present on March 26, 2025, at Longmont Tru Hospice Care Center. Fred was born in Burlington, Vermont on March 2, 1939, to Franklin Eulah Denny and Ella Mabel (Mathewson) Denny. Fred grew up in Bristol, Vermont where he began his lifelong love of music and almost any outdoor activity that brought him close to nature. At the age of ten, he began playing trombone with the Bristol Town Band and continued playing into his late seventies. As a boy, Fred loved to camp, hike and canoe and was an active member of the Boy Scouts of America and worked as a summer camp counselor. He loved adventure and at the age of 12 learned to fly in a friend’s small Aeronca Champ airplane.

In 1957, Fred graduated from Terryville High School (CT), where he played soccer, trombone (with both the band and orchestra), served on the student council and sang with the Glee Club, among many other activities. He was also active in his church and held leadership roles with his local and regional youth groups.

Fred earned degrees from the College of William and Mary (A.B. in Philosophy, 1961), Andover Newton Theological School (Bachelor of Divinity, 1965) and The University of Chicago, Divinity School (M.A., 1969 and Ph.D., 1974).

In 1962, Fred married his college sweetheart, Alexandra Ivanoff. While working toward his Ph.D., Fred and Alix spent a year in Cairo, Egypt where he learned to read, write and speak Arabic. He traveled extensively throughout his career, including to Egypt, Pakistan, Malaysia and Indonesia, where the family spent a sabbatical year in 1984-85.

In his senior year of seminary, the president of Andover Newton recommended him for his first teaching position at Colby Junior College for Women. He loved it and his students loved him. Thus began his fulfilling career in teaching. Fred later taught at Yale University and the University of Virginia. In 1978, he joined the University of Colorado Religious Studies faculty, where he earned tenure and served for a period as Department Chair. In 2005, he retired as Professor Emeritus of Islamic Studies and History of Religions.

Fred was the author of the widely used college textbook, "An Introduction to Islam". He was the founding editor of the University of South Carolina Press scholarly 35 plus volume book series "Studies in Comparative Religion” and published four co-edited volumes. He authored many reference articles (in Encyclopaedia of Islam, The Encyclopedia of Religion etc.), and has served on the editorial boards of five scholarly journals. He also co-authored "Jews, Christians, Muslims: A Comparative Introduction to Monotheistic Religions" and was the lead editor of "Atlas of the World's Religions, 2nd edition".

Fred served for eleven years on the national board of directors of the American Academy of Religion and for six years on the national board of Theta Alpha Kappa: National Honor Society for Religious Studies/Theology.

Fred loved music, books and outdoor life in Colorado. He sang in the choir and was a member of the First Congregational Church in Boulder and later the Boulder Valley Unitarian Universalist Fellowship. He was a member of the Board of Directors of the Boulder Bach Festival for many years, played recorders with the Boulder Recorder Society and trombone with the Niwot Community Semi-Marching Free Grange Band. Fred would often visit libraries and used bookstores and enjoyed exploring the Front Range as well as tending his backyard garden. He loved the Rocky Mountains and enjoyed hiking, camping, canoeing, skiing, sailing, fishing and bird and wildlife watching throughout his life. He was devoted to his students and took great pleasure in teaching and mentoring them throughout their careers.

Fred was brilliant, kind, creative and often the life of the party. He had a positive view of the world, often remarking how beautiful the day was, how delicious his meal was and how happy he was to see whoever had come to visit. He was a loyal friend and a patient and loving father and husband; the absolute best.

Fred is survived by his wife of 62 years, Alexandra Ivanoff Denny; son and daughter-in-law Joshua Mathewson Denny and Karin (Lehmann) Denny; daughter and son-in-law Sydney Eldridge Denny Dickey and Michael James Dickey; grandchildren Jacob William Dickey, Ian Frederick Dickey and Cameron James Dickey; sister Allene Mathewson (Denny) Thurston; and many other cherished family members. Fred is predeceased by his parents, brother Franklin Mathewson Denny and sister Norene (Denny) Thergesen.

The family would like to thank Alta Vita Memory Care Centre and Tru Hospice Care Center at Longmont United Hospital for their compassionate care.

Music and a celebration of life for Fred will be held at 2:00 pm on August 9, 2025 at the Boulder Valley Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, 1241 Ceres Dr, Lafayette, CO 80026. In lieu of flowers please donate to the Boulder Valley Unitarian Universalist Fellowship.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.howemortuary.com for the Denny family.