Marcus Takeshi Miya

Marcus Miya, beloved husband, uncle, brother, cousin and friend passed away at the age of 77, after a long and courageous journey with end-stage interstitial lung disease. Marcus was born in 1949 to Nagako & Tamotsu Miya in Salt Lake City, Utah. Marcus was born three days before his grandfather, (Takeshi Miya), passed away. Although pulmonary fibrosis is a wicked horrible way to die, his journey through life leaves a legacy of adventures, including fishing, skiing, scuba diving, & traveling, built on a solid foundation of stoic strength, gentle humor and loving kindness.

During his youth he enjoyed visits from his out of state cousins introducing them to camping, fishing, horseback riding, skiing and sports (soccer and volleyball). Marcus was always very athletic, playing soccer with the University of Utah when it was just a club sport. He played volleyball with many groups clear into his retirement.

Marcus graduated from West High School in 1967. Like so many Japanese American high school graduates, he started working at Pagoda Restaurant right after high school. He had so many stories about his adventures of working for Fujio “Fudge” Iwasaki at Pagoda.

In June 1968, he joined the Navy on the “buddy system” with 2 of his friends. No one told them they would be placed in a position that best matched their skill set, so ultimately the three friends were separated. Marcus served in the Navy for 4 years and his military service took him to Vietnam on the Coral Sea Aircraft Carrier working on the electronics of the E-2C Hawkeye. This is the airplane that has a rotating radar dome mounted to the fuselage.

Marcus’ career started at Ford Motor Company, where he worked for 8 years, forming lifelong friendships. Moving to Xerox offered work that utilized his electronics skill where he worked until his retirement at age 57 years. Making lifelong friendships is a core characteristic of Marcus. It has resulted in “framilies” from Ford, Xerox, Angel Lake, Buddhist Church, Japanese Christian Church, and Healthcare Risk Management to join the Miya, Minaga and Ballard families for a most fulfilling life.

Marcus married Karie Minaga in 1987, twice. He always said, married twice, one wife. A marriage that has been highlighted by travel throughout the states, and over seas for adventures in camping, fishing, scuba diving, camel riding, and more adventures than one can count. Although Marcus and Karie were not able to have children of their own, they have many children in their lives.

Marcus will be deeply missed by his wife, Karie, brother Miles, sister in law Vicki (Glenn) Ballard, brother in law Mark (Gail) Minaga, nephews & niece Elliott (Jenn), Tad (Lindsey), Daniel (Elise), Alyssa (Jonathan), Matthew (Emily) and grandnephews & nieces Tamotsu, Emi, Takeshi, Koa, Piper, Caden and Taisaku, and many cousins, friends and framily.

The family would like to express their deepest gratitude to Dr. Kelley Fulghum, Dr. Peter Crossno, Aspire Home Health & Hospice, Right-At-Home Caregivers and the endless family and friends for their care, support and love during this journey.

Funeral services will be held at Memorial Murray Mortuary (5850 South 900 East, Murray UT 84121) on Friday, November 20, 2026, at 11:00 a.m. Visitation will be held from 10-11:00 a.m. just prior to the service. The service will be live streamed. Link to the livestream will be available on the Memorial Murray Mortuary website.

The Salt Lake Buddhist Temple was very important to Marcus. so lieu of flowers or Koden, please consider contributing to the Salt Lake Buddhist Temple Capital Campaign (click here: Ways to Give — Salt Lake Buddhist Temple).