stone free or die: Good find <ftb> for the photo - Gogel photos are surprisingly hard to find for such a regionally prominent and durable player.It looks to me that <Andy Porter>, a former student and long time friend, is on the left, and <Dennis> is on the right.
Here's a pic of <Andy> accepting a check from the tournament:
https://s3.amazonaws.com/ClubExpres...
Here's a picture of <Dennis> on the cover of the Bicentennial issue of <Indian Chess Quarterly Jan-Mar 1976>
https://dokumen.tips/documents/indi...
He had quite a bit more hair, and less weight, back then, of course.
The article you linked mentioned that he had just quite smoking (back in 2015) - which certainly added years to his life, but it's likely his years of smoking contributed to his death.
But exactly what he died from isn't listed anywhere - so it's only speculation. He was cremated and had no service at his own request.
https://www.tributearchive.com/obit...
(Has mention of Porter being his student, as was Craig Hines)