For Kelly Benavidez (b. 1976), life began in the northern California community of Daly City in a Spanish-speaking household. Her parents, Amelia and Genaro Benavidez, were among the few Latinos in their area at the time. Her parents felt strongly about immersing Kelly and her older brother in their Mexican culture. They made the important decision to return to Jalisco, Mexico with their young children.

Flo Mlynarczyk was born in Fort Morgan, Colorado. Her parents divorced and she moved with her mother first to Loveland, Colorado and eventually to Los Angeles, California. Upon graduation from high school in 1943, Mlynarczyk moved to Kodiak, Alaska, to live with friends.

Paul Christensen was born on August 26, 1932. He grew up in Las Vegas, Nevada during the World War II era. His parents were M.J. and Hazel Christensen, founders of a jewelry business. He attended the Fifth Street Grammar School, the John S. Park School, and Las Vegas High School. Too young to enlist, he was of an age that could focus on his education and opportunities for success. He attended college, earned a marketing degree, and joined the Air Force ROTC program. He flew B-47 bombers during the Cold War.

William Morgan was born in Kansas City, Missouri and moved to Las Vegas with his family in 1969. Morgan entered the slot industry early by becoming an instructor at his father’s gaming school which provided instruction on slot and arcade repair and maintenance. His start in the gaming industry was in 1989 when he became a slot technician at the Imperial Palace. Morgan would later move to the MGM Grand as a journeyman slot technician in 1993 and eventually to the Stratosphere in 1996 as shift lead slot technician.

Accountant Charles J. Hirsch was born in New York City, New York on November 8, 1912. After graduating from New York's Pace University in 1938, with a degree in Accounting and Business Administration, he traveled to Las Vegas, Nevada, where he was employed by the Apache Hotel on Fremont Street. His stay in Las Vegas was interrupted once by a five-year tour of duty with the Air Force Contract Audit Division, where he attained the rank of captain before his release in 1946.

Artemus W. Ham Jr. was born in 1920 in Las Vegas, Nevada to Artemus W. Ham Sr. and his wife Atla Mereness Ham. He was the oldest of three children born to the couple. Ham Jr. attended the University of Nevada, Reno and Stanford University for his bachelor's degree. He then went on to earn his law degree at Hastings College of Law in San Francisco, California.