Gary K Iwamoto MD

Dr. Gary Ken Iwamoto, 68, of Salt Lake City, Utah, passed away on April 30, 2025. He was born June 28, 1956, in Salt Lake City, Utah to Nobuo and Yasuko Iwamoto. Gary attended Highland High School before receiving his Bachelor's Degree in Material Science and Engineering at the University of Utah and his Master's Degree at the University of Wisconsin. Gary attended The University of Utah and received his medical degree. He went on to complete an Internal Medicine Residency and Pulmonary/Critical Care Fellowship at the University of Iowa in Iowa City. Gary dedicated his life to the betterment of the medical community, serving as the Director of the MICU and later as the Chief Data Officer at the University of New Mexico Hospital in Albuquerque, New Mexico. He established an Adult Asthma Clinic, was an academic professor, mentored fellows and faculty, and was a constant source of knowledge, advice, and leadership. He retired in 2021 and received professor emeritus after more than 30 years of service.

Gary will be remembered as an amazing physician with a relentless passion for patient care, medical research, teaching, and mentoring. Many will also remember him for his love of jazz music, his incredible night photography, his explorations hiking Southern Utah's national parks, and his annual attendance at the Utah Shakespearean Festival. However, far and away, he will be most remembered for being a devoted husband, father, grandfather, brother, son, and friend.

Gary is survived by his wife, Pamela, his children, Matthew (Mai) Iwamoto, Dr. Traci (Dr. Anthony Digiorgio) Iwamoto, and Julie (Christopher) Checchio, his four grandchildren: Ian, Kai, Dorothy, and Frank, his mother, Yasuko Iwamoto, and his sister, Jani (Steve Fukumitsu) Iwamoto.

A Celebration of Life service will take place at Wasatch Lawn Memorial Park and Mortuary on May 30, 2025, at 10 a.m. for close family and friends of Gary.

In memory of Gary and to continue his life's work and dedication to the medical community, the family invites you to donate to The Gary Iwamoto Scholarly Tribute Fund in lieu of flowers. The fund will provide financial support to medical residents and pulmonary fellows for educational training opportunities at the University of New Mexico School of Medicine.