Cai Emmons
Cai Emmons was an award-winning American author. Emmons died on January 2, 2023, at the age of 71 years old. The cause of death was ruled ALS.
Books
His Mother’s Son Oregon Book Award: Ken Kesey Award for the Novel, Booksense and Literary Guild selectionThe Stylist Weather Woman , Vanishing: Five Stories Winner of the 2019 Sinking Islands May Sarton Award,, Unleashed Livid- ''The Bells''
Plays
“Mergatroid” and “When Petulia Comes,” teleplays for the CBS series The Trials of Rosie O’Neill.Personal life
In 2021, Emmons received a diagnosis that explained troubling physical symptoms she had been experiencing: Bulbar-onset ALS. Bulbar ALS, a neuromuscular disease, first attacks muscles of the head and neck, including vocal cords.She continued to write, sending her final manuscript for a novel to the publisher on the day she died. The book was released in October 2025.
When her condition deteriorated significantly, she determined to pursue the option allowed under Oregon law known as .
Legacy
, Red Hen Press. To honor the life and legacy of novelist Cai Emmons, Award-winning documentary feature-length film, Ojeda Films, 2025. Sandra Luckow, Director; Sandra Luckow, Kat Vecchio, Producers; Sheila Nevins and Paul Calandrino, Executive Producers;, Composer.