Mary Mendenhall, a lover of storytelling and spirituality, grew up in Northern California but has also lived in Canada, Cyprus, and Uganda. Although active in the extra-curricular music world, she studied nursing and anthropology at Azusa Pacific University and has worked in community health and hospice nursing in the States, and taught music, drama, and spirituality overseas. While living in Uganda, she "met" the Lady Poverty, who inspired this book. She currently lives in Washington state and has three grown sons.