Karen Walker was born February 18, 1967 in Las Vegas, Nevada. She grew up working at her parents’ local restaurant, Hamburger Heaven. She attended community college and graduated from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas in 1985.

LaVerne Ligon was born in Washington, D. C. She attended the Jones-Haywood School of Ballet. Later, she joined the Capitol Ballet Company. She moved to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1973. In 1974, she successfully auditioned for a touring cast of Hello, Dolly! After completing that show, Ligon performed in a number of productions in Las Vegas, including Hallelujah Hollywood and Jubilee. She retired from dancing in the early 1980s after sustaining an injury and she opened the Simba Talent Agency, a dance school for at-risk youth.

Eva G. Simmons was born in Somerville, Texas December 31, 1938. She grew up in Austin, Texas. Simmons moved to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1963. She worked for the Clark County School District, and has an elementary school in North Las Vegas, Nevada named for her. Eva Goins Simmons never imagined moving to Las Vegas, Nevada, but she moved here twice: Once briefly in 1957 to be with her sister and then again continuously in 1963 after graduating from University of Texas, Austin and marrying her husband George Simmons.

David L. Washington was born in Delhi, Louisiana around 1950. Washington then grew up in Las Vegas, Nevada and eventually began his career as a firefighter in 1974. In 2001, he became the first African American fire chief for the City of Las Vegas.