Lin Yuan Wu
Lin Wu
Lin Yuan (neé Chen) Wu of Brier, Washington, and a longtime resident of Louisville, Kentucky, passed away on Thursday, August 21, 2025, at the age of 91. She was surrounded by her three daughters, Yung-Hsing Wu, Mie-Mie Wu, and Shao-Bai Wu.
Travel and movement shaped the contours of Lin’s life. Her immigrant story took her from Inner Mongolia, mainland China, and Taiwan, to Oklahoma, New York, Ohio, and Kentucky; her curiosity took her across the U.S. and the globe. As a tomboy she tumbled across the countryside on the outskirts of Baotou in northern China; as a young professional she navigated Manhattan working for the public library system in Queens; as a wife and mother she believed in family trips that mingled cityscapes with the outdoors, museums, local cultures, and, always, food. She and Shi-Yu Wu, her husband of 55 years, shared a love of travel that spanned their married life, from early excursions to the gorges of New York and the rocky beaches of New England, to later (and longer) trips on their own to London, Florence and Rome, Athens, and Hong Kong. Travel for them included seeing well-known sights, but just as important was the time spent ambling about new places. Together they made travel a principle for raising their three daughters, instilling in them the value of being open to the world, its people, its histories.
Lin and Shi-Yu
Her pleasure in travel was matched only by the pleasure she took in being productive. She was something of a second mother to her three younger siblings, who recall the care she took in helping their mother manage the needs of a large household and the model she set for them in doing so. Studious and persistent to a fault, she graduated from the prestigious National University of Taiwan before leaving home to begin a master’s degree program in Library Science at Oklahoma State University. Within weeks of completing that program Lin was recruited to join the Queens Public Library system in New York City, learning the ropes of one of the nation’s busiest branches. Later a move to Cornell University’s Wason Collection on East Asia posed a different challenge, but Lin felt anchored by the work there, where her cataloging expertise and knowledge of Chinese literature offered value to the collection and the scholars who came to advance their research. Over the course of her career Lin would go on to work in university, school, and public libraries, with even short stints after retirement at a seminary library and a number of private collections. To each of these Lin gave her meticulous, deliberate attention, finding purpose in any guise that work took, and believing that all work deserved such care.
Lin called Louisville, Kentucky her home for over forty years, where she wore her librarian hat as well as the hats she donned as wife and mother. She took pride in making two homes that were both lived-in and elegant. She became something of a mother figure to Chinese graduate students at the University of Louisville, who came to her for advice in navigating the city, and who knew they could come to the Wu house for the holidays — and Derby week — when they could not afford to return to their own homes. While she did not anticipate the move to Seattle, she approached it as she had done in all the previous moves in her life, having made the decision that it was the right and best thing to do. In Brier Lin became a regular walker amongst a neighborhood of walkers, recognizable for her daily jaunts and amiable chats. And she made a home in Brier just as she had in Louisville.
Lin is survived by her daughters, her sons-in-law John Laudun and Mike Spillner, and three grandchildren, Lily Wu-Laudun and Jack and Sophie Spillner. Her family asks that those wanting to honor her memory consider donating to her local PBS station, Cascade PBS, or the Seattle Chinese Garden.
Cascade PBS
Donations Mailing Address: PO Box 84109, Seattle, WA 98124-5409
Online at Cascade PBS – Make a Donation
Seattle Chinese Garden
Mailing Address: 6000 16th Ave SW, Seattle, WA 98106
Online at Seattle Chinese Garden – Donate
7 Responses to “Lin Yuan Wu”
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What a beautiful tribute to an extraordinary woman. Reading this obituary brought back so many wonderful memories of the past 30+ years Lin and I shared together. Lin and Professor Wu, this respected couple, was more than friends to me – Lin was like a second mother, a big sister and a best friend who had been guiding me with love, kindness, and wisdom through so many seasons of life. This obituary captures her warmth and spirit so well, and it moved me deeply, I feel so grateful for all the moments we had together, and I will carry her memory in my heart always.
I will cherish my friendship with Lin. She was a remarkable individual, extending her hand to anybody who needed help. I have many fond memories of the time spent with her and her incredible family. She raised three beautiful daughters and instilled in them her values. She was a pillar of the Chinese community in Louisville who held her in high regard. She left indelible impression in our hearts with her kindness. We will miss her very much.
Jayanthi
I will cherish my friendship with Lin. She was a remarkable individual, extending her hand to anybody who needed help. I have many fond memories of the time spent with her and her incredible family. She raised three beautiful daughters and instilled in them her values. She was a pillar of the Chinese community in Louisville who held her in high regard. She left indelible impression in our hearts with her kindness. We will miss her very much.
Jayanthi
Lin was a remarkable person who touched many lives in Louisville, extending her hand to anybody who needed help. She left indelible impressions in our hearts and minds with her kindness. We will cherish her friendship and will miss her very much. May she rest in peace.
Jayanthi
Lin, we always called her Mrs Wu, was a wonderful woman. I met her in the spring of 1999 when I came to the University of Louisville as a postdoc in Dr. Wu’s Condensed Matter Theory (CMT) group. She and Dr. Wu often involved us to their holiday parties. She made very delicious food for us. We like talking with her and Dr. Wu, sharing their loving stories, their lovely daughters, grandson and granddaughters, their extensive experiences in their life, etc. Her sweet smiles always warmed our heart. We have been become closed friends for more than 25 years even they moved to Seattle. We feel grateful for all the moments we had with her. It will be our lifetime cherished vivid memory of Lin’s family atmosphere. We will miss her very much and wish her and Dr. Wu love forever in heaven.
Ming and Harry
The very sad news that Mrs Wu left us brings me into the wonderful and warm time with Mrs Wu during my academic visit to Professor Shi-Yu Wu’s research group at the University of Louisville. I was treated by Mrs Wu’s like a kid to mother with respectful manner as Professor Shi-Yu Wu and Mrs Wu were the same age as my parents. They invited group members and me to their home on traditional festivals enjoying delicious meals and chat. When Mrs Wu learned that my hometown is Chongqing, she told me that she spent her childhood in Chongqing and called me “Chongqing Zai Er”, a nickname for young man and teenager in Chongqing. Her such experience makes me feel close to her. During the stay in Louisville, I felt the everlasting affection and love between Professor Wu and Mrs Wu. Their affection and love make me believe that Mrs Wu met Professor Wu in another world for their continuing love and happy life.
Wei Quan Tian (Chongqing University)
The passing of Mrs. Wu has made us deeply feel the loss of another old friend. But we believe that she and Professor Wu still have many friends with them in heaven, and they will be happy forever!
I came to Louisville in 2007 and got to know Professor Wu through Ming and Dr. Weiquan Tian, a visiting scholar who rented a room in my apartment. A year later, Chunjuan came to Louisville with our two daughters. Although it was a new city for us, we quickly settled in thanks to the help of many warm-hearted friends here—such as Weibin, Danwen, Hui, and Ming. We are deeply grateful for all their help.
Thanks to God’s arrangement, after we bought our house, the Wus became our closest Chinese neighbors. They treated our family—not just my wife and me, but also our two daughters—with the care and affection of elders, and they also became good friends with my parents-in-law, who came from China to visit us.
Professor Wu once shared with us stories from his youth: playing soccer in Taiwan, studying in the U.S., participating in the movement to defend the Diaoyu Islands, and later returning to China to visit his older brother who had suffered during the Cultural Revolution and give lectures after the mainland opened up. (I once wrote down the stories Mr. Wu told and gave them to him in hopes that he would continue writing them as a memoir.)
Mrs. Wu recommended a family doctor she trusted—Dr. Balakrishna—and often shared her experiences in financial management with us. We also had the privilege of attending several parties hosted by her and Professor Wu. While enjoying delicious food and wine she prepared, we listened to Professor Wu’s amusing stories about reviewing local restaurants during his time working in California, and admired the artwork displayed in their living room, including paintings by two great 20th-century Chinese landscape artists, Zhang Daqian and Pu Xinyu.
They even invited our whole family to a concert at nearby Ballard High School, where we enjoyed Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto and learned the correct pronunciation of Dvořák’s name.
Now that both of Professor Wu and Mrs. Wu have left us, their voices, smiles, and the friendship and care they showed our family will forever remain in our hearts.
Delin & Chunjuan