Travis – Gary’s loyal friend
The character of Travis is based on a young man named Brennan, whose
family has been good friends with the author’s family for many years. In
life, Brennan has gone through several very difficult realities. His two
older half-brothers were both diagnosed with cancer at a young age and
though they fought the disease for years, both passed away just eighteen
months apart.
Nate, the eldest, was first diagnosed at age 10 but
was the second to pass away at age 18. Drew, Nate's younger brother, was
diagnosed with cancer at age 13 and was the first to pass away at age
15. The biological mother of these two boys was also taken by cancer
when the boys were just 1 and 2 years of age. The only mother they ever
really knew was their stepmother, Brennan’s mother, who filled the role
of Mom to son and stepsons as well as any biological “mom” the author
has known. The author has commenced writing a book entitled “Bad Genes”
that he hopes to complete in the coming years.
In The Island Gang series, Travis (Brennan)
stands by Gary, come what may.
Curtis – another loyal friend
Curtis is Dustin, and another of Sean’s (Gary) best friends. Though
Curtis’ personality has been tweaked for The Island Gang, Dustin
was in reality shorter than average for many years and can identify with
the comments in the book relating to Curtis’ stature. But Dustin has
learned that the true measure of a man lies in his character, not in his
size; something that Curtis will also learn as the series continues.
Tyler – Curtis' autistic cousin
Though not part of the Island Boys, the character of Tyler was patterned
after the author’s nephew who is actually autistic. The personality
reflected in Tyler in The Island Gang is the author’s perception
of his nephew at the age Tyler is depicted in the story. Though
autistic, Tyler has grown and matured dramatically over the years, which
is a credit to his family who has loved and nurtured him along. Tyler is
a brilliant young man who attends traditional schools where he receives
nearly straight A’s. He is an inspiration to all who know him.
Justin – another good friend
The character of Justin was created from Robby, also a good friend
and member of the Island Boys. Robby is the only son in a family of five
children and was the youngest until another little sister came along
about two years ago.
Wendy –
The character of Wendy is patterned after the author's daughter, Ashley,
and other than the fact that she doesn’t sing, her personality is fairly
well portrayed in Wendy’s character throughout the book.
Reg (Mr. Grisham) – former FBI Agent
The character of Mr. Grisham is patterned after the author’s
grandfather, whose name was actually Reg. The author's grandmother,
portrayed as Lucille in the book, actually met an early death as the
result of Multiple Sclerosis. Reg loved his wife as much as the author
has ever known a man to love a woman. Through her debilitating years of
progressive multiple sclerosis, Reg could always be found right at her
side caring for her.
Though Reg did not in reality retire and travel with
his wife on a 52 foot sailboat, Reg did buy and convert a large van into
a vehicle that he hoped would transport his wife comfortably so that
they could visit grandchildren. When it proved too difficult to make
Lucille comfortable enough, Reg sold the van and gladly resigned himself
to serving his wife until the day she passed away.
Lucille – Mrs. Grisham
As stated above, Lucille is the author’s grandmother. She loved life,
and looked forward to being a grandmother and taking an active role in
the lives of her grandchildren. She resented the crippling disease that
gradually took control of her body. She fought as long and hard as she
could, finally relenting to a wheelchair, and eventually becoming
bedridden. Grandma was dearly loved and it pained her family to see her
uncomfortable and discontent.
Rose – the second Mrs. Grisham
The character of Rose is the woman that never came into the life of the
author's grandfather; Reg would have no other. Reg knew that death was
not the end of life and was content to wait for his time to be called
home to be reunited with Lucille again. The fictitious character of Rose
was created for literary purposes in The Island Gang series.
The majority of the personalities portrayed in The Island
Gang are real characters from the author’s life.