Stephen Gabriel was born in Quincy, Massachusetts. The son of a merchant sea captain and a homemaker, his family moved to Florida and then to the Panama Canal Zone. He is a graduate of Loyola University of Chicago and the University of Illinois and holds a Ph.D. in agricultural economics. His career spans federal government service and chief economist of a small government agency. His books include topics on finance, fatherhood, aging, and spirituality. Gabriel lives in Falls Church, Virginia, with his wife, Peggy. They have eight children and forty grandchildren.