Lillian Goon was born in Portland, Oregon in 1900. Her father was Seattle’s Chinese consul and hotel owner Goon Dip. Until 1933, Lillian Goon lived with her family at the Milwaukee Hotel, in Seattle’s Chinatown. She graduated from the University of Washington in 1924. Ms. Goon studied ballet with several teachers, including Seattle’s Mary Ann Wells, and she frequently performed in Chinese costume. She also enjoyed horseback riding.

At some point, Lillian Goon took her father’s full name as her surname, becoming Lillian Goon Dip. She moved to Mercer Island in 1939, where she raised Siamese and Persian cats. Lillian Goon Dip lived on Mercer Island until her death in 1975.