About the Author

Bringing Kumi to life has been a long process for author, Antoinette Sarcinella. Her heritage of mixed Native American and Celtic blood has combined to give her an understanding of life from two paths. Her Native American roots come from her maternal grandfather, Hunkpapa Lakota and Assiniboine, who was born at Wood Mountain Reserve in Canada in 1899.

Wolf and Owl Remember is her first book. Taking her story telling lessons from her mother, an award winning news reporter in Southern California, she has reached into her own past to bring Wolf, Owl and Kumi to life. As her own children were growing up they often heard the ancient legends and stories that are the basis for Wolf and Owl’s journey through time and space.

Although she is widely recognized as a talented storyteller, the author's background ranges from her work as a deputy sheriff to crime prevention consultant to child advocate. Now retired, she lives in Payson, Arizona. She still consultants regularly on drug and alcohol education and prevention programs for youth development organizations nationwide. She is best known for developing MethSMART, a methamphetamine education and prevention program utilized by Boys & Girls Clubs across the United States.


About the Illustrator

Joseph Wolves Kill’s bloodline comes directly from the Uto-Aztecan language family, the Comanche and the Oglala Sioux Nation. A self-taught artist, he studied the work of many artists in order to create his own powerful reflections on personal struggle and spiritual harmony. His work is shown throughout the United States as well as in Europe and Japan. Known for his imaginative range of subjects as well as for historically accurate, uniquely contemporized images of nations, tribes and families, Joseph works primarily, though not exclusively in oil and acrylic.

Joseph currently lives in Tempe, Arizona where he is an active member of both native and non-native communities. Images from his art have been used to advertise and promote conferences with organizations such as the Intertribal Council of Arizona, Arizona State University’s Creative Writing Department, the Arizona Nurses’ Association and Atlatl, National Native Arts Network. He is a mentor to many young artists in the community, teaching young people through his work as an art teacher for the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Scottsdale and other youth groups throughout the community.

 

Content © Copyright 2020 - Antoinette Sarcinella.  Images © Copyright 2020 - Joseph Wolves Kill
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