FREMONT — Shigeharu Nakamura, a man with a wonderful smile, passed away peacefully after a courageous battle on June 4, 2008 at Marin General Hospital in Greenbrae, after living a full life of 83 years.

He was born in Newark, Calif. and was educated in Japan. He returned to the U.S. in 1940 and began working on a farm in the Centerville district of what is now the City of Fremont. During WWII, he and his family were interned in Topaz, Utah and Tule Lake, Calif. Upon his release he joined the Army and proudly served in the Army of Occupation in Germany.

In 1960, he established Naka Nursery and in 1976 established Mission Adobe Garden Center.
In 2005, the Washington Hospital Healthcare System opened a clinic in Union City and named it the Nakamura Clinic in honor of his decades of service to the surrounding communities.

Devoted husband of the late Janet Chiye Nakamura of Fremont; loving father of Wendy Nakamura of San Diego and Stacy Nakamura of Mountain View; father-in-law of Gail Satake-Nakamura; brother of Sam (Mary) Nishimoto of San Mateo, Yaeko (Kay) Yasuhiro of Fremont and Mas (the late Betty) Nakamura of Capitola; grandfather to Rachel and Rossten Nakamura; and uncle to many nieces and nephews.

Family and friends are invited to attend funeral services Saturday, June 14, at 3:30 p.m. at Southern Alameda County Buddhist Church, 32975 Alvarado-Niles Rd., Union City, CA 94587. Visitation will be on Friday, June 13, from 4 to 8 p.m. in the chapel of Berge-Pappas-Smith Mortuary, 40842 Fremont Blvd., Fremont, CA 94538, with committal services Monday, June 16, at 3:30 p.m. at Oak Hill Memorial Park, 300 Curtner Ave., San Jose, CA 95125.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to be made to the Liver Transplant Fund in memory of Shigeharu Nakamura. Donations can be sent to UCSF Foundation, P.O. Box 45339, San Francisco, CA 94145-0339.

He received his liver transplant in 1989 and was one of the first patients for the UCSF Liver Transplant Program, which began in 1988. As the Liver Transplant Program is celebrating its 20th anniversary, he was able to celebrate 19 years thanks to the liver transplant that he received.