Karen Willis Amspacher is a dedicated advocate for the working waterfront community of Harker’s Island, North Carolina, where she was born and raised. She is the founder of the Core Sound Waterfowl Museum and Heritage Center, an institution that celebrates and preserves the local traditions of boat building and decoy carving. Amspacher's family has a long history in boat building, and she has worked tirelessly to support and develop new markets for local seafood. She is also actively involved in addressing the challenges of gentrification and regulations that impact her community.

Kenneth Sherman was born on October 6, 1932 and was raised in Boston, Massachusetts.In his early years, he would spend time with his father at the local Boston Fish Pier to observe the fishermen. He graduated from Suffolk University with the idea of attending law school. A mentor guided him towards biological sciences so he applied to the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. He taught in western Massachusetts for the Audubon Society before he began his career at the Bureau of Commercial Fisheries in 1956.

Kevin Curole is a seasoned fisherman with a career spanning 37 years in the shrimp industry. Born in New Orleans, Louisiana, Curole grew up in Baie L'Fuje, Guiana, and is of Cajun ethnicity. His family has a long history in the fishing industry, with both his father and grandfathers being shrimp fishermen. Curole started his journey in the industry at the tender age of three, living on a 22-foot shrimp boat with his grandparents. In addition to his fishing career, Curole has also worked as a support boat driver for the offshore oil industry in Louisiana.

Kevin Hart is a former lobsterman who now runs the only water boat delivering water to fishing boats in New Bedford and Fairhaven. He grew up in Westport, where his father was part-owner of a lobster boat; he now lives in Dartmouth. He talks about being the only water boat provider, the decline of the industry and its current status in New Bedford, even with current prosperity of scalloping, as well as voicing future ideas for New Bedford with and without the industry.

Dr. Leonard Roche is a retired fisherman and educator from New Bedford, Massachusetts. Born into a family of Newfoundland descent, Roche has a rich history in the fishing industry, having started his career as a lumper before transitioning into roles that allowed him to represent the fishing industry in various organizations, such as Boat Owners United and the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Treaty Organization. In addition to his work in the fishing industry, Roche also had a simultaneous career in education, serving as a school principal.

Marco Randazzo is a retired fisherman and rope sculptor originally from Palermo, Italy. Born in 1945, he immigrated to Gloucester, Massachusetts in 1969 following an earthquake in Italy that worsened an already difficult economy. Coming from a family of fishermen, Randazzo continued the tradition in Gloucester, often working as the "twine man" in charge of maintaining and repairing the nets on the fishing boats. In his retirement, he has taken his skill with knots and rope and creates rope sculptures of figures and religious icons, many related to his life on the sea.

The son of a scalloper, Mark was introduced to the waterfront early. Not knowing what he wanted to do as a career after graduating from high school, he started buying and selling fish.  Eventually, he and his partner worked their way up from nothing to buying Bergies.  He discusses the changes in the business from when he started, especially the harsh realities of today that are a consequence of strict regulations (so fewer fish being landed) and changes in technology that has taken the jobs of many workers.

Mark Phillips is a seasoned fisherman and boat owner based in Greenport, New York. Born on December 7, 1956, Phillips has been involved in the fishing industry since he was eight years old. His family has a long history of involvement with the sea, with his great grandfather being a coastal trader. However, Phillips is the only member of his family to become a full-time fisherman. He owns and operates an 83-foot dragger named F/V ILLUSION, fishing out of Greenport, Long Island, New York, and New Bedford, Massachusetts.

The father and son duo, Paul and Mathieu Lemieux, have run the successful New Bedford, MA shoreside business, Blue Fleet, for over twenty years. Throughout their lifetimes working with the fishing industry, the two have drawn upon their optimistic outlooks, values of respect, and continual adaptability for support and strength within a frequently changing and challenging industry. Paul Lemieux is a seasoned shoreside business owner and operator hailing from the coastal town of New Bedford, Massachusetts. He is the founder of Blue Fleet Welding.

Natalie Ameral, a female of Portuguese descent, was born in Fitchburg, Massachusetts, in 1994. She worked as a government contractor and port sampler, collecting lengths and biological samples such as otoliths based on a list provided by NOAA Fisheries. Ameral was the only female among seven port samplers in her company. She started working as a port sampler the year after graduating from college.