SEMANICK, Brenda Mae
Extraordinary and beloved wife, artist, and educator, passed away on November 11, 2019, at the TMC Hospice after an epic five-year battle with ovarian cancer. Brenda and her twin sister, Tamera were born in Trier, Germany on December 1, 1956, and adopted at three weeks old by U.S. Air Force firefighter Pete Semanick and his wife, Grace. After graduating from the University of Arizona, Brenda became a teacher at Sunnyside and Desert View High Schools. Brenda became a phenomenal art instructor and her students won the top Congressional Art Award two times. After 30 years of public education, Brenda retired and opened an art studio where she continued to hone her painting skills and taught oil painting to an expanding crew of loyal students. Brenda also enjoyed creating public art projects, including the Wrightstown/Tanque Verde Hohokam Lizards pier and the art for the new Luis Gutierrez Bridge over the Santa Cruz. Brenda received innumerable awards, including an Arts Educator Lumie, induction into the Sunnyside Hall of Fame, finalist for Arizona Teacher of the Year, Signature Membership in American Women Artists, the TMA Arizona Biennial, and 25 years of stunning posters for the Arizona Chamber Music Society. Brenda's paintings are in the collections of the Tucson Airport and the Tucson Museum of Art as well as hundreds of private collections. Brenda's passing has left an enormous void and her unique personality and amazing gifts will be sorely missed by a legion of students, fans, and friends, especially her husband, David Vandenberg, her surrogate daughter Rebecca Macaulay, and her dogs, Willy and Dottie. Brenda would especially appreciate any donations people might want to make to ovarian cancer research and Peppi's House at TMC. A celebration of remembrance will be held at Brenda's studio at 5406 East Pima Street on Monday, November 25, 2019 at 11:00 a.m. Arrangements by OASIS CREMATION AND FUNERAL CARE.
