For every one of his 57 years, John Shinsky has been overcoming odds.

Shinsky's father died when he was just eight years old. Shortly after that, his overwhelmed mother placed him in the Parmadale Orphanage in Cleveland. That was where he stayed for the next four years, until the Weiss family opened their doors to him as a foster child.

Shinsky spent his teen years with the Weiss's, becoming a star football player and wrestler at Cleveland St. Joseph and earning a scholarship to Michigan State in 1969, in a class that included Brad Van Pelt, Joe DeLamielleure and Billy Joe Dupree.

As a Spartan, Shinsky excelled on the field and in the classroom. He earned three letters (1970, 72, 73) on the gridiron as a defensive tackle and Academic All-America honors in 1973. Shinsky received a bachelor's degree in elementary and special education from Michigan State in 1974.

Joe DeLamielleure grew up in a family of 10 in Center Line Michigan in a factory neighborhood 10 miles from Detroit’s Tiger Stadium. Joe graduated from St. Clements High School and received a football scholarship to Michigan State University in 1969. An All-America and three-time All-Big Ten performer at Michigan State, “Joe D” as he was known, was selected in the first round of the 1973 NFL Draft by the Buffalo Bills.

A starter from the first game of his rookie season, he went on to play in 185 consecutive games during his 13 playing seasons with the Bills and the Cleveland Browns, only three of which were not starts.

He went on to become the most honored lineman of the Bills respected front wall. Eight times during his career he was selected first- or second-team All-Pro; seven times he was named first- or second-team All-AFC, and six times he was named to the Pro Bowl. In 1975, the NFL Players Association named him Offensive Lineman of the Year.

Eljay Bowron was born and raised in Detroit Michigan. The son of a Detroit Police Officer, Eljay went to Detroit Denby High School and played football there, which resulted in a scholarship to Michigan State University in 1969. When Eljay's college football hopes were sidelined by a series of knee surgeries, he turned his energy toward a career in law enforcement and public service. After graduation from MSU, Eljay became a Detroit Police Officer. He later joined the Secret Service in 1974. For 23 years, Eljay focused his intelligence, judgment, and deep professionalism on implementing, improving, and reforming the critical national missions of the United States Secret Service.

In December of 1993, Eljay was appointed as the 18th Director of the United States Secret Service working for 6 different Presidents during his tenure in the Secret Service. Eljay was also directed by the Secretary of the Treasury to lead a crisis management team that initiated security improvements at the White House complex, including the closing of Pennsylvania Avenue to vehicular traffic to protect it from terrorist attacks.

Following his retirement from the U.S. Secret Service in 1997, Eljay served in senior executive positions at the Social Security Administration, the Government Accounting Office (GAO), and the Department of Interior, where he was appointed Inspector General.

Following his government service, Eljay became the Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Vance International, an international security and consulting firm headquartered in northern Virginia, where he remained until 2003. Vance International operated offices in Mexico, Brazil, the UK, and South Africa.

Dick Comar hails from Adrian, Michigan and is the son of Jack and Pauline Comar.  Pauline became an orphan at the age of one year and was raised by her brother and 4 older sisters.  Her parents were immigrants from Poland.

Dick graduated from Adrian Catholic Central High School and won 14 letters in football, basketball, baseball and track.   He graduated with a B.S. in Biology and was captain of the fencing team at the University of Detroit. While receiving his M.S. in Biology from St. Mary’s College of Winona, Minnesota and a M.A. in Educational Administration at Michigan State University, Dick taught math and science and coached football, baseball, track, wrestling at the prep levels. He also coached football at Wayne State University, Indiana State University, Alma College, Michigan State University, Toronto Argonauts, Eastern Michigan University and was an assistant coach with the Buffalo Bills under Hank Bullough and Marv Levy.

Dick is a member of the Michigan High School Football Coaches Hall of Fame, the Detroit Catholic Coaches Hall of Fame and is a 35-year member of the American Football Coaches Association. In addition, Dick has been a longtime volunteer for the Special Olympics.

Dick and his wife Carol have been married 45 years and have 4 children. Their two sons, John and Joe, graduated in Marine and Civil Engineering from the United States Coast Guard Academy. Both also played football at the Academy. Daughter Jenny was vice-president of ticket sales with Detroit Lions and daughter Cathy lives in Cleveland, Ohio. Dick and Carol have 9 grand children.