Mrs. Mineko Nakazawa

Mineko Kawasoye Nakazawa August 11, 1936 – August 23, 2025 Mineko Nakazawa was born on August 11, 1936, in the Bronx, New York, the eldest of four daughters to Thomas and Haruko Kawasoye. A proud third-generation Japanese American, she traced her heritage to her paternal grandfather, who immigrated from Japan in the 1880s and settled in New York City. In 1941, Mineko and her family moved from New York to Baltimore, a city she would call home for the rest of her life and which she embraced as her own. She attended Roland Park Elementary School, graduated from Western High School "A" Course, and went on to earn a degree in Chemistry from Goucher College. She later earned an MBA with a concentration in healthcare and finance from Loyola College. Mineko began her career in clinical microbiology in 1953 as a laboratory assistant at Baltimore City Hospital. Over the years, she held various roles, including rotation technologist at Church Home and Hospital (1955–1960), medical technologist and supervisor of clinical chemistry at Saint Agnes Hospital (1957–1961), and supervisor of clinical chemistry at Maryland General Hospital (1967-1973), during which time she presented a paper on clinical enzymology to the Maryland Society of Medical Technologists. From 1965 to 1972, she served as a research associate in the Department of Neurobiology and Psychiatry at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. During her tenure, she co-authored a NASA-funded paper published in Brain Research (1968), which examined the effects of gravitational changes on RNA in cerebral neurons and glia. Later in her career, she owned and ran Medi-Center Labs, a successful independent clinical laboratory with locations at 606 West Lexington St. in downtown Baltimore and 500 North Rolling Road in Catonsville for more than 25 years. Mineko was deeply involved in her professional and local communities. She was an active member of numerous professional organizations, including the American Society of Medical Technology, the Maryland Society of Medical Technologists, the American Association for Clinical Chemistry, the American Association of Bioanalysts, and the American Chemical Society. Her interests extended beyond science-she was a passionate artist and craftsperson. She was a skilled designer and fabricator of custom gold jewelry using vacuum and lost-wax casting techniques, and a member artist of Pyramid Atlantic in Baltimore, specializing in traditional Japanese hand papermaking. She belonged to the Gem Cutters Guild of Baltimore and the Maryland Sheep Breeders Association. She also served on the Board of Trustees at McDonogh School, the Women's Auxiliary of St. Agnes Hospital as its President, the Baltimore-Kawasaki Sister City Committee, and on the cultural subcommittee for the Maryland-Kanagawa Sister State Committee. She was a staunch advocate in the 1980s for laws in Maryland supporting the right of patients to access their complete medical records. Mineko Nakazawa is survived by her loving husband, Dr. Hiroshi Nakazawa; their three children, Muraji Nakazawa (Michele), Naoko Slack (Michael), and Zenji Nakazawa (Donna); six grandchildren (Andrea, Kelly, Ginger, Jonathan, Christian, and Claire); seven great-grandchildren; many nieces and nephews; and her loving sisters Suzi Green, Vicki Steel, and the late Reiko Schellinger. She will be remembered for her intellect, creativity, advocacy, and deep dedication to her family, profession, and community. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests a charitable donation to Gilchrest Home/Senior Living Hospice Care, a nonprofit, 501(c)(3) organization. https://gilchristcares.org/donate/