Kailamai Hansen didn't have high expectations when she aged out of the foster system in Coeur d'Alene.

Burdened with memories of child abuse and still grieving the sudden loss of her mother, Hansen said, help from strangers or anyone at all seemed unlikely.

Until she got just that.

"I went down to Health and Welfare to get assistance for a place of living, and they gave me a box," she said.

Inside were all the basics someone new to settling in a home would need: Pots, pans, dishes, blanket, tool kit.

There was also a book by Richard Paul Evans, with a note from his nonprofit that serves abused and neglected children.

"I was very moved. I thought, 'Wow, somebody cared enough to think about me and my situation,'" Hansen said. "It was a huge box, and it wasn't like it was full of materials. It was full of love."

It was the nudge of encouragement she needed to turn a 180 on her life, she said.

Today, married and pursuing degrees in criminal justice and social work, the 23-year-old hopes to help others in the same way that box and its message helped her.

"It changed me from being shy, hurt and an introverted person to being more open," she said. "I hope that people can see that no matter what their situation, you can make anything of it."

After meeting the tenacious woman, Evans was impressed enough to put her story to pen.

Evans, not only the founder of The Christmas Box International that gave Hansen the box, but also an international best-selling author, chose to base a character in his newest book, "Miles to Go", on the Coeur d'Alene woman.

"She is one of the most hopeful people I've ever met, especially for someone who has been through the abuse and hardship in her life," the Salt Lake City writer said. "She doesn't play the victim. She has dreams and she's going to reach them. You meet someone like that and it's just stunning."

The novel is the second in a five-book series, Evans said, about a successful businessman who abruptly loses his wealth and processes the loss by walking from Seattle to Key West, Fla.

The first novel in the series, "The Walk," ended with the character making it to Spokane, he said.

The second picks up on his journey through the Lake City, where he meets the young runaway, Kailamai, at Fourth of July Pass.

The inclusion of Hansen was a bit of serendipity, Evans said, adding that he hadn't planned writing about Coeur d'Alene because of her.

"Going from Seattle, it just made sense," he said of planning his character's journey. "Either you have to head straight south from Seattle, which would be inefficient, or take Highway 2, which he does. From there, he really has no other way."

Committed to his wayfarer character, Evans has followed every mile of his protagonist's journey, driving the same route with his daughter and writing assistant, Jenna Evans Welch.

When they stopped for the night in Coeur d'Alene, where they stayed at The Coeur d'Alene Resort, the pair remembered an endearing young woman they met years before, named Kailamai.

"Of all the people we've met, and we've helped thousands of abused children, she stood out," Evans said.

She would be a fantastic character, Evans realized at his arrival to Coeur d'Alene. But he didn't know how to reach her.

"I didn't even know if she still lived in Coeur d'Alene," he said.

When he clicked online that night, though, he found his answer in an e-mail from Hansen.

"The chance was one in a billion," he said. "We met her at Wendy's, and she told us her whole story."

Much of it was dark, including the molestation that occurred when she was a child. She entered the foster system at 12, and her mother passed away four years later.

"All of my books have messages," Evans said. "A character with her story will hopefully raise awareness of abused children."

Hansen said she was thrilled to inspire a character.

"It's awesome," she said.

Evans has already encouraged her to write her own story and put it to print, she added. He sells her 26-page book, "Out of the Darkness: My Journey Through Foster Care" on his website, with proceeds going toward her education.

Evans has written 16 New York Times bestsellers, according to his website, including "The Christmas Box," which inspired a CBS movie.

"Miles to Go" is available for sale nationwide. For information, go to www.richardpaulevans.com.

Evans has received thousands of comments from readers about the book series, he added.

"We've all suffered losses in our life, especially in this time, with people losing their homes and their jobs," he said. "It's really nice hearing the books bring them comfort."