Born as one of four children in Manila, Philippines, Minddie and her siblings were raised by their paternal grandmother and her sisters (the Three Lolas) in the Philippines when her parents took jobs in New Jersey. After the children joined their parents, the family moved to California, where Minddie suffered abuse and subsequently lived in several foster homes and a girls' home, Olive Crest. It was through Olive Crest that Minddie met her mentors, Bruce Layne, Roy Woofter, and Thalia Dondero and came to Las Vegas in 1995, where she worked with the airlines.

Michelle DiTondo talks about her parent's experiences living in Osaka, Japan during the war. Father died after the war from tuberculosis. Her mother worked as a seamstress/tailor on the Air force base at the NCO club where she met Michelle's father. Michelle had moved from Tucson to Okinawa and then to Nellis in 1972. She would spend most of her childhood in North Las Vegas for more than 30 years. She speaks on her experience being in an air force family and moving from base to base as well as her fond memories of Las Vegas before casinos were built.