- Date Of Death: January 6, 2013
- State: Alabama
MIYAGAWA, MITSUKO age 84, passed away at her home in Trussville, Alabama on January 6, 2013–one day before her 85th birthday. She is survived by her loving husband of 62 years, Ichiro Miyagawa; son Shigeru Miyagawa (Reiko) of Boston; daughters Haruyo Miyagawa of Birmingham and Mari Songer (Hal) of Clay; and four grandchildren. She is also survived by five sisters and two brothers, nieces, nephews, and other extended family who live in Japan. Mrs. Miyagawa was born on January 7, 1928 in Hiratsuka, Japan. She graduated from Hiratsuka Girls’ High School and Kyoritsu Women’s College in Tokyo. During World War II, she worked for a time at an airplane factory riveting parts on airplanes. After college, she worked at the Customs Office in Yokohama. She married Ichiro Miyagawa in 1950. While her husband worked as a physicist at the University of Tokyo, she helped run the family noodle-making business. In 1962, she came to the United States with her husband and children. After three years in Durham, N.C., the family moved to Tuscaloosa, Alabama where her husband accepted a position in the Physics Department of the University of Alabama. She had little knowledge of the English language or American culture when she first came to this country, but she learned English and adapted to American ways in an impressively short time. She managed the difficult task of raising her children in a foreign land far from the support of her family and long-time friends. After the children were grown, she followed various artistic pursuits including pottery, Japanese tea ceremony, and writing haiku. Her husband retired from the U. of A. in 1992. The couple moved to Trussville 12 years ago to be near their daughters and two of their grandchildren. Mrs. Miyagawa possessed uncommon spirit and grace which enabled her to make the best of life’s challenging circumstances. She greatly enriched the lives of those who came to know her.
