It is with a heavy heart that I deliver the news of the passing of Kevin Killian, beloved faculty member of the graduate writing program. Kevin died peacefully and painlessly on Saturday, June 15 after battling with health issues related to cancer treatments. He was surrounded by his wife Dodie Bellamy and family, who played songs and read poetry until his passing.
Kevin joined CCA in 2005 and was known for his generosity, both as an educator and a colleague. In the classroom, he was a steadfast advocate for his students. He championed their work, supported their projects, and could always be found at their events. As a colleague, Kevin was a perennial collaborator. Whether it was small press publications, research, or performance, he loved involving others in his journey to manifest writing in new ways—a vanguard writer ahead of his time.
Kevin joined San Francisco’s literary community in 1980 as one of the original New Narrative writers. Over the course of his rich career, he published several award-winning books across a variety of genres, wrote almost 40 plays for the San Francisco Poets Theater, and contributed greatly to scholarship on American poet Jack Spicer. Kevin was a prolific writer, original thinker, generous educator, and earnest collaborator who will be greatly missed. A tribute was published last night on ArtForum.
On behalf of the college, I extend my deepest condolences to Kevin’s wife Dodie Bellamy, his family, and his numerous friends both on and off campus. He will be warmly remembered as a compassionate soul that cared deeply about the written word and the education of young writers and artists.
Sincerely,
Stephen Beal
--
