Candace Moose, author of The Grateful Heart, is a 1973 graduate of Cornell University/New York Hospital School of Nursing. She retired from an almost 30 year career in nursing in 2000 when she and her husband moved to Long Island from California. Candace decided to pursue her lifelong dream of helping victims of HIV/AIDS in Africa in her retirement and after investigating several options, decided to travel to Malawi in August 2001 with Save The Children. The immunizations that she received six weeks before the date of travel to that part of the world triggered an often fatal disease called Giant Cell Myocarditis. She was admitted to several hospitals and was critically ill upon arrival at Columbia in September 2001, where she received a heart transplant four weeks later. The book is an expression of her gratefulness to the doctors, nurses, staff persons, family and friends who cared for her throughout her illness and recovery. As well, the book attempts to document the amazing set of miracles that led to her being alive today. The book includes chapters written by her husband, her children and her doctor, Dr. Mario Deng, Candace's post-transplant cardiologist.

Candace recently moved to North Carolina with her husband of 33 years, Jim, and her two schnoodle puppies, Max and Libby. Additionally she has two adult children, Brad and Lauren, one daughter-in-law, also Lauren, and one grandchild, baby Ellie. When not speaking on behalf of organ donation or her faith, she is probably busy either cooking or playing tennis.