“Orphaned and becoming a ward of the state four years after her birth to immigrant parents, Vivien Charles spent fourteen years in six foster homes. Her education depended on the location of those homes. Growing up in this environment she did not just survive but developed into an intelligent, caring and driven woman. At eighty-eight she remains busy in her church, a mentor to her extended family of young men and women, and working with elders cultivating their interest in leading a full and satisfying old age. Her motto: “I want to be a role model for the coming generation.”