Denise Annette Slechta was born on February 7, 1966, to Wayne and Gloria (Jurgensen) Kuehnhold in Denison, Iowa. She was baptized and later confirmed at Zion Lutheran Church in Denison. She graduated from Denison High School with the class of 1984. Following her education, she worked at Sherman Bryant and Breadeaux Pizza both in Denison. She then managed Rainbow Glass with her mother for many years. Also, she worked at Loby's picking up cardboard.

Denise married Roger Slechta on November 20, 1993, at Zion Lutheran Church in Denison and were blessed with one son, RJ. The couple later separated. Recently, Denise worked at Prime Times Lounge as the kitchen manager and was the "cleaning lady" at Book 'Em Dan'o's.

Denise was a lifetime member of Zion Lutheran Church. She enjoyed socializing and spending time with her friends. She also enjoyed planting flowers and tending to her garden. She was a wonderful cook and baker and will be especially remembered for her deviled eggs and sweet potatoes with pineapples and butter. She was a hard worker and usually held more than one job. Above all, she enjoyed being a mother and grandmother. No matter what time of day or night she would be there for her loved ones.

Denise passed away suddenly, with her son by her side, on Saturday, January 7, 2023, at CHI Health Immanuel Hospital in Omaha, Nebraska at the age of 56 years and 11 months.

Denise was preceded in death by her father, Wayne Kuehnhold and sister-in-law, Lagene Kuehnhold. She is survived by her son, RJ Slechta of Denison and his father, Roger Slechta of Charter Oak; mother, Gloria Kuehnhold of Denison; two grandchildren: Ryatt and Remington; siblings: Dean (Elizabeth) Boger of Denison, Tim Kuehnhold of Denison, and Janeen (Dana) Lobaugh of Dow City; step-siblings: Chris Kuehnhold of Tennessee and Daina Williams of Florida; many nieces and nephews; and other relatives and friends.

Visitation will be held from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday, January 11, 2023, at the Huebner Funeral Home in Denison. The funeral service will be held at 2:00 p.m. on Thursday, January 12, 2023, at Zion Lutheran Church in Denison, and interment will follow in Crawford Heights Memory Gardens. Memorials may be directed to the family.