Michael Bernard Kohn

Mike lived an exemplary life, always striving to do right by friends, family, and employees as well as for the larger world in which he lived. Summer camp on New Hampshire’s Lake Winnipesaukee introduced him to hiking and sailing, through which he discovered a joy in nature that served him, through cross-country skiing, rafting, and backpacking as well, for the rest of his life.

Family trips to concerts, museums, and historical spots left him with lifelong interests in classical music, art, and politics.

At Muhlenberg College (1967-1971, BA in political science), he found common footing with friends and Sigma Pi Epsilon fraternity members in politics and the emerging hippy movement (and for college-boy pranks!). He spoke out against the Vietnam War in testimony before Congress and as editor of the college paper. His strong convictions against war won him Conscientious Objector status.

After college he headed West with other Muhlenberg graduates, intending to live the communal hippy life. After hitchhiking around the country, he, with college friends and others, bought land in 1974 on Slagle Creek, in the Applegate of southern Oregon. They called the commune Molto Bene. Mike was the animal keeper for the commune, tending the goats, sheep, rabbits, chickens, and work horses. It was there that he raised his two daughters, Zoey and Allegra (with ex-partner Francine Gentile).

In 1986 Mike bought Chim Chiminey Sweepers, which he developed into a thriving business. In 1996 he opened Home Comfort Hearth and Patio in Grants Pass and later opened a second store in Phoenix. Mike was an excellent businessman, well loved by his employees and his customers. One of his greatest satisfactions was in providing a good job for his employees.

One of Mike’s proudest achievements was being elected to the board of the Applegate School District in 1990, long hair notwithstanding. He served on the Applegate School Board and later the Three Rivers School Board until 2001. In later years, he served on the boards of Options and of two environmental organizations, the Applegate Trails Association and the Applegate Neighborhood Network and participated in Jackson County’s juvenile justice program. He also served on the Phoenix Urban Renewal Agency and was a long-time member of the Oregon Chimney Sweep Association and the Hearth, Patio, & Barbecue Association.

The group that perhaps meant the most to Mike was the group of men who came together through Robert Bly’s Warriors movement. He met weekly with that group till his death, more than fifteen years.

Mike was also a stained-glass artist—many of us have his delightful “silly birds”—and an adventurer. Among his most notable trips are a solo climb up Mt Katahdin and a family reunion raft trip down the Grand Canyon. When he met fellow hiker, ATA board member, and adventurer Diana Coogle, in 2012, he started a relationship that lasted until his death, sharing many hiking, backpacking, and cross-country ski trips, including a backpack trip to Alpine Lakes Wilderness Area two months after his surgery for esophageal cancer in 2015 (a remarkable achievement), and a thirteen-day hike on the Alta Via 2 in the Dolomite mountains in Italy.

One of the highlights of Mike’s life was his marriage to Diana, May 18, 2019, in a beautiful wedding on the Applegate river, celebrating their deep love.

Mike frequently expressed how proud he was of his daughters and the love he had for his grandchildren. He was predeceased by his father (Lewis) and his mother (Patricia) and is survived by his wife, Diana Coogle; daughters Zoey Kohn (Scott Lochmann) and Allegra Stuart (Greg); grandchildren Morgan and Rosalie Stuart and Quincy and Nolan Lochmann; his sister, Janet Friedman; and his brother, Donald Kohn (Gail). Numerous nieces and nephews who loved him also survive him.

Mike was a good father, a doting grandfather, a generous boss, a loyal friend, a conscientious community member, and a loving brother and uncle. Above all, for me, he was the best companion I’ve ever had.