Nazneen Noreen Daruwalla

Nazneen Daruwalla, beloved daughter, sister, aunt, granddaughter, niece, cousin and friend, passed away the evening of Sunday, August 17, 2025, with family by her side. Nazneen 's 57 years on earth were spent loving deeply, caring wholeheartedly and showing kindness to all living things. She was an accomplished artist who expressed her peaceful disposition through her paintings and a myriad of hands-on art forms. She was a fantastic cook, and while she was an ardent fan of most sports, none quite compared to her love for her home basketball team, the Phoenix Suns. Born in Manitoba, Canada, on April 16, 1968, as the eldest daughter of Noshir and Zarine Daruwalla, she was inquisitive, playful and the center of her parents' universe as they tenderly cared for her due to her health complications at birth. Eventually moving to Daytona Beach, Florida, she and her family ultimately settled in Scottsdale, Arizona, where Nazneen was naturalized as a proud U.S. citizen during her youth. She attended Liberty Elementary School, Desert Shadows Middle School and graduated from Horizon High School in 1986, gaining great friendships through neighborhood and school connections along the way. Throughout her formative years, Nazneen was under the guidance of a multitude of doctors in the Phoenix area. Beginning at the age of 14, she received dialysis for approximately two decades of her life. Over her lifetime, she received five kidney transplants and one liver transplant and held immense reverence for the precious gifts provided by donors. Nazneen was fiercely protective of her donated organs, living every day with gratitude to honor her lifelines by taking care of her health to the best of her ability. Nazneen attended and graduated from Arizona State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Information Systems and worked as a business manager at her father's restaurant during her twenties. She was known to all who knew her as a smart, tenacious, small but mighty cookie! Nazneen was remarkable in every aspect of her life. She was fun and feisty, with a quippy sense of humor, yet also deeply kind, compassionate and spiritual. Her loyalty, thoughtfulness and generosity were constants, as were her selfless nature and organized, forward-thinking mind. She dreamed of living an independent, healthy and fulfilling life. Her greatest loves were her nieces and nephews, as well as her adored African Grey Parrots, Coco and Cooper. Nazneen was preceded in death by her beloved mother, Zarine Daruwalla. She is survived by her father, Noshir F. Daruwalla; sister, Zenobia Mertel; brother-in-law, Matthew Mertel; sister, Shernaz Zeleznak; brother-in-law, Ryan Zeleznak; two nieces and three nephews, Paloma Zarine Mertel, Zane Matthew Mertel, Vance Matthew Mertel, Gianna Mistry Zeleznak and Cruz John Zeleznak; grandmother, Sheroo Behram Mistry; loving aunts, uncles and cousins around the world. Nazneen will be forever missed and in our hearts until we meet again.