June Phelps was born in Long Beach, California, and is a graduate of Pomona College with a B.A. in English Literature. She earned a Master of Arts in Teaching from Harvard University and taught literature in the Beverly Hills schools. She studied fine art at the Brentwood Art Center in Los Angeles. An award-winning artist, Phelps is a member of the Los Angeles Art Association, Women Painters West and the Pacific Palisades Art Association. She and her husband Carl have two grown children, four grandchildren and live in Pacific Palisades, California.