George Hendrick is a retired University of Illinois English professor and department chair who served as the first president of the James Jones Literary Society and edited To Reach Eternity: The Letters of James Jones.

Helen Howe taught American literature, composition and creative writing at Lincoln Trail College in Robinson, Illinois, before retirement. Her husband, Tinks, was a childhood friend of James Jones.

Don Sackrider, current president of the James Jones Literary Society, is a retired airline captain, was born in Robinson, Illinois, and became the second student in the Handy Writers' Colony after James Jones.