Cai Emmons (1951-2023)
Author Cai Emmons, 71, died January 2, 2023 in Eugene OR. She had ALS, and chose to end her life under her state’s “Death with Dignity” law.
Caroline Emmons was born January 15, 1951 in Boston MA, graduating high school in 1969; she spent her junior year abroad in England. She studied psychology and drama at Yale, graduating in 1974, and went to Tisch School of the Arts at New York University to study film, graduating in 1981. She worked in the film industry in California in the ’90s.
Emmons graduated with an MFA from the University of Oregon in 1998, and debut novel His Mother’s Son appeared in 2003. In all she published six novels and a story collection, some with speculative content, notably Weather Woman (2018) and sequel Sinking Islands (2021). She taught at numerous institutions, including nearly 20 years as a creative writing instructor at the University of Oregon.
She was diagnosed with ALS in February 2021. Shortly after her diagnosis, she married her longtime partner, playwright Paul Calandrino; he survives her, along with a son from her first marriage.
