Poet Koon Woon passed away, surrounded by friends and loved ones, August 13, 2026. Koon was a joy to publish, and we have many good memories of his generosity and care, and will always remember fondly walking around a rainy Lake View Cemetery where Koon pointed out Bruce Lee’s gravesite and then read poems at his own father’s grave — and then going to eat dumplings in Seattle’s International District.

Born in a village near Canton, China, Koon Woon immigrated to Washington State in 1960. He earned a BA from Antioch University Seattle and studied at Fort Hays State University. He is the author of the poetry collections Water Chasing Water (2013), winner of the 2014 American Book Award from the Before Columbus Foundation; and The Truth in Rented Rooms (1998), winner of a Josephine Miles Award from PEN Oakland. His poetry appears in Premonitions: The Kaya Anthology of New Asian North American Poetry (1995), among others. He has also published a memoir, Paper-son Poet: When Rails Were Young (2016). Woon is the publisher of Goldfish Press and the literary magazine Chrysanthemum. He lived in Seattle.