Sara Lois "Do" Johnson was born April 5, 1922 to Olive Fisher and Earl Johnson in Pasadena, California. She lived in Pasadena until 1946. She married William Harvey Stiver on March 8, 1946 in Las Vegas, Nevada. She was active in the local tennis community. Harvey Stiver operated a gas and service station in Las Vegas. He passed away in 1975. She later moved to Prescott, Arizona.

Mark J. Whitmore is the son of Suzette and Sidney Whitmore. He was born in Washington D.C. on August 23, 1947. He graduated from Western High School in Las Vegas, Nevada in 1965. He served in the United States Army after high school. He later graduated from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas with a degree in hotel administration in 1974.