William M. Akutagawa, Jr. was born February 18, 1948 on Moloka'i. His late father, William M. Akutagawa, Sr., was the son of Japanese immigrants. His mother, Katharine Hagemann Akutagawa, is the daughter of a German immigrant father and Hawaiian mother.  William grew up in KamalO and visited his grandparents in 'Ualapu'e often, spending much of his youth fishing the waters off of 'Ualapu'e Fishpond. He attended Kilohana School and Moloka'i High School, graduating in 1966.

Margaret (Kamaka) Spinney was born on September 26, 1910, in Kalaoa, North Kana, Hawaii. She was the daughter of Jacob Palakiko Kamaka and Kalua Pimoe Makahi, who were lau hala weavers. In 1930, Margaret moved to Kailua, Kana, where she worked as a coffee bean sorter at the American Factors coffee mill. A year later, she married Arthur Spinney, a commercial fisherman. In 1937, they moved to Oahu, where Arthur began working as a parks keeper in Nanakuli. Ten years later, they returned to Kana.

Katherine "Nina" Kalaiwa'a was born on July 28, 1910, in Ke'ei, South Kana, Hawaii to parents Victor Kukua Kalua and Veronica Keawe. She attended Napoopoo School and held a variety of jobs throughout her life, including housekeeper, babysitter, plantation worker, castor bean picker, coffee farmer, and lau hala weaver. Between 1932 and 1948, while living in Honolulu, she worked as a waitress and a pineapple cannery worker. Later in life, she became a resident of Honokohau, North Kana, and was active in various Hawaiian clubs and senior citizens' groups.

Gabriel Ka'eo, a native Hawaiian, was born on February 18, 1903, in Wai'ea, South Kana, Hawaii. His parents were Jones Emmanuel Ka'eo and Harriet Kamoku. Throughout his life, Gabriel lived in various places including Kealia, Hookena, Kana, and Honolulu. He held a variety of jobs such as a sugar plantation laborer, coffee picker, stevedore, contractor, and a stone wall builder. In 1926, he married Katherine Ka'ai and they had two children. As of the time of the interview in 1980, Gabriel was residing in Hookena.

Fred Iona, a Hawaiian-Portuguese farmer, was born on March 19, 1899, in Pahoehoe, South Kana, Hawaii. He was the youngest of eight children, and his father was a teacher at Alae School. Iona left school after the fourth grade to work on the Magoon Ranch in Pahoehoe. He eventually acquired his own land and cultivated various crops, including 'awa, banana, macadamia nuts, and peanuts. Iona is an active member of the Macadamia Nut Growers Association and continues to farm his land.

Amoe Giugni, a Hawaiian-Chinese woman, was born in 1894 in Kahaluu, North Kana, Hawaii. Her father, Lee Sam, also known as Akamu by the Hawaiians, was a Chinese immigrant who owned a store and tailoring business . Her mother, Kipola, was a native Hawaiian from Kona who wove and sold lau hala products. From a young age, Amoe learned about fishing, lau hala weaving, and other Hawaiian practices. She continued to reside in Kahaluu into her late 80s.

Martina Kekuewa Fuentevilla, a lifelong resident of Kona, Hawaii, was born on September 30, 1908, in Honaunau, South Kona, Hawaii. Raised by her kahu hanai, a system of guardianship commonly practiced in Hawaii, she lived separately from her mother, who resided with Martina's grandparent. Throughout her life, Martina held various jobs, including a coffee picker, tobacco stringer, hat weaver, and entertainer. She began her career as an entertainer at a young age, playing music with her aunt, Mrs. Kelekolio. In 1927, she married Leon Labadios Fuentevilla, with whom she had six children.

Akira Otani, born in Honolulu, Hawai'i in 1921, grew up in a predominantly Japanese neighborhood with a strong fishing industry presence. His father ran a fish stall and wholesale business, while his mother worked in the fish and pineapple canneries. Otani's father had little involvement at home due to his work schedule, and Otani and his siblings had to take care of themselves. He attended Pohukaina School, a Japanese-language school with strict discipline, and later pursued a college preparatory program at Washington Intermediate School and McKinley High School.

John Vegas, Puerto Rican, the sixth of fifteen children, was born on November 30, 1912, in North Kohala, Hawaii.  His parents immigrated to North Kohala from Puerto Rico in 1901.  Antone Vegas, John's father,worked as a laborer at Kohala's Union Mill Plantation.  In 1924, the family moved to Honolulu where Antone Vegas worked as a track layer for Honolulu Rapid Transit (HRT).

Agustina (Abaya) Villa, Ilocano, was born in Dingras, !locos Norte, Philippines on August 28, 1893 . The fifth of six children, Agustina helped support the family by taking in laundry from the people of her barrio. She also sewed clothing. Agustina married Antonio Villa in 1913 . In 1924, Antonio left for Hawaii to find work in the sugarcane fields. He was assigned to Lahaina, Maui. Agustina remained in the Philippines and continued sewing and laundering until 1931, when she and two of her children joined Antonio in Lahaina .