Robert Howard Daniel (“Bob”) Phillips was born in Regina on December 3, 1921. He attended school there, including taking one year of classes at Regina College. In 1941, he joined the army and served during World War II, leaving in 1945 with the rank of Sergeant, RC Artillery. He completed his BA (Hons) degree, with a double major in Economics and Political Science, from the University of Saskatchewan. In 1948, he began a career as a journalist, working variously for the Canadian Press, the "Regina Leader Post", and the United Press; in Canada and Europe. In 1960, he joined the staff of the Saskatchewan Wheat Pool, becoming its first research analyst and subsequently, director of their Research Division. In 1973, he was named editor and publisher of the "Western Producer", as well as general manager of Western Producer Publications. He married Tanyss Bell in 1951; they had two sons. Phillips was active in the Presbyterian Church as well as with both the University of Saskatchewan and the University of Regina. He was awarded an honorary degree from the University of Regina (1988); was given the Citizen of the Century award from the City of Saskatoon (1989); named a Fellow of the Agricultural Institute of Canada; awarded the meritorious service award, Nutana branch of the Royal Canadian Legion (2000); was a Member of the Order of Canada; and named a life member of both the Canadian Agricultural Economics Association and of the Saskatchewan Institute of Agrologists. Following his retirement from the "Western Producer" in 1986, he was partner in Bell Phillips Communications Inc, a family-owned publishing company. He died in Saskatoon in 2006.

Hugh Duncan (“Howdy”) McPhail was born 14 March 1915 near Bankend, Saskatchewan. His early schooling was in Prince Albert, and in 1934 he won a hockey scholarship to Notre Dame College in Wilcox, Saskatchewan. He attended the University of Saskatchewan from 1938-1942, graduating with a BSc in agricultural economics. Just over a week after writing his final exams, Howdy enlisted in the air force, learning how to fly in a de Havilland Tiger Moth at the Prince Albert Elementary Flying Training School. He served throughout the war, surviving a bail-out over Sweden and flying 28 missions. He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for “his unselfishness, splendid record, and high degree of courage…”. Initially a Sask Wheat Pool field man, Howdy established McPhail Airways in North Battleford (later, McPhail Air Services Ltd.) in 1952. During the spring and summer he sprayed crops; offered flying lessons; and began taking aerial photographs of farms and towns throughout the West and extending into BC, Ontario, and the United States. Farm photographs were ordered by the farm owners, often as small prints and in some cases, hand-tinted (a young Allan Sapp was one of the people hired to do this). Products were later expanded to include greeting cards and for images of towns, postcards and calendars. By 1962 he effectively stopped his aerial photography. He continued to operate McPhail Air Services until 1981. He was inducted into the Saskatchewan Aviation Hall of Fame in 1995; into the Agricultural Hall of Fame in 1999; and a park in North Battleford was named in his honour. Howdy died in March 2001. [Source: Bill Waiser, Portraits of an Era).

Frederic Harrison Edmunds was born in Hawarden, North Wales in 1898. He received his B.Sc. (1922) and MSc. (1923) from the University of Liverpool. In 1925, he came to Canada and joined the Department of Soils at the University of Saskatchewan. Professor Edmunds was named chairman of the Department of Geological Sciences in 1961, a position he held until his death in February 1965.

Frank M. Quance was born in Elimville, Ontario in 1883. He attended Normal School in Regina before going on to the University of Alberta, where he earned both a BA (1914) and MA (1915). Quance first taught in rural and secondary schools in Ontario, Alberta, and Saskatchewan between 1901 and 1916, and became an Inspector of schools in 1916-17. In 1917, he joined the staff of the Normal School in Regina as an assistant. He received his PhD from Columbia University in 1926. By 1927, he had been appointed Principal of the Regina Normal School. Quance came to the University of Saskatchewan in 1927 to organize the School of Education, and the following year was appointed the first Dean of the newly created College. Under his leadership, the College of Education developed from a one-year postgraduate certificate course to an undergraduate degree program. Quance retired in 1947 and was named Dean Emeritus. That same year, he established the annual Quance Lecture Series. During his career, Quance gained a reputation as a leading Canadian educator and was particularly well known for developing the first spellers in Canada based on research. (A speller is a book that teaches spelling). The University of Saskatchewan awarded Quance an honorary Doctor of Laws in 1959. Quance died in Saskatoon on September 10, 1968.