Our sweet, beloved Mother, Grandmother and Great Grandmother returned home to her Heavenly Father on January 18th, 2021. She was born on February 9, 1931 in Tremonton, UT to Giichi B and Shigeno Fukui. She married Stanley Aizo Nakamura on August 24, 1957. Marriage later solemnized in the Salt Lake Temple. She was a devout member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.
Aeiko was very intelligent. She was the first of her family to attend college. Her family sacrificed much to send her. She graduated from the University of Utah with a degree in Dietetics. She completed an internship at St Mary’s Hospital and the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN. She was the winner of the Mary Agnes Foley Award for Outstanding Intern.
Aeiko worked for the State of Utah traveling from town to town to set up their school lunch programs. She left Utah to help set up school lunch programs in California. This is where she met her future husband. 2 years later they returned to Utah and she began a career at the VA Hospital in Salt Lake City. She retired as Chief of Dietetic Services after 30 years of service. Her constant energy would not allow her to sit still after retiring so she began working part-time as a clinical dietician at Utah Neuropsychiatric Institute. She worked with many who suffered from anorexia and bulimia nervosa. This was her greatest challenge as a dietician and she helped many with her usual love and compassion.
Aeiko was an avid golfer, even achieving a hole in one. She loved golfing with her grandchildren. For many years she golfed in the summer and bowled in the winter with friends from the JACL.
Aeiko’s favorite pastime was cooking for her family. She cooked a family dinner every Tuesday and every holiday for the last 20 years. She was an avid sports fan and a season ticket holder for the Utah Jazz and Utah Utes. She was also a season ticket holder for decades following football, baseball, basketball, soccer, lacrosse and dance for her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. She rarely missed a game.
Aeiko is survived by her children, Cindy (Kim) Garrick, and Mark (Sue Ellen) Nakamura, 5 grandchildren and 11 great grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her husband, parents, 2 brothers and 2 sisters. She is the last of a wonderful family.
A viewing will be held from 11AM - noon on Thursday, January 28, 2021. Wasatch Lawn Mortuary, 3401 Highland Drive, Salt Lake City, UT. Graveside service to follow at 12:30.
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