Bland Simpson is Kenan Distinguished Professor of English and Creative Writing at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is also pianist for the Red Clay Ramblers, the Tony Award-winning string band, and has collaborated on such musicals as Diamond Studs, Fool Moon, Kudzu, and King Mackerel & The Blues Are Running. In 2005 he was the Fine Arts recipient of the North Carolina Award, the state's highest civilian honor.
Ann Cary Simpson, photographer, served for thirty years at national and North Carolina environmental organizations and as associate dean for development at UNC's School of Government, for which she received the Chancellor's Award. She is now a senior associate with moss + ross consulting.
Tom Earnhardt, a lawyer by profession, is a committed conservationist and environmentalist. He is also the writer, coproducer, and host of the popular television program Exploring North Carolina, which airs on UNC-TV.