Gabrielle Giffords represented Arizona's 8th Congressional District in the US House of Representatives from 2007 until 2012. A graduate of Scripps College, she has a master's degree from Cornell University. She was a Fulbright Scholar in Mexico and a fellow at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government. She was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Joe Biden in 2022.

Mark Kelly has served as the US Senator from Arizona since 2020. He was a captain in the United States Navy when he commanded the final mission of space shuttle Endeavour in May 2011. A veteran of four space flights to the International Space Station, he is a graduate of the United States Merchant Marine Academy and holds a master's degree from the US Naval Postgraduate School.

Jeffrey Zaslow (1958-2012) was most recently the author of The Magic Room. His other books include The Girl from Ames and, as coauthor, The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch.