She has run the great race. She has finished the course. She has fought the good fight. She has kept the faith. And now the All-just judge will award her the prize, the garland of righteousness. [2 Timothy 4:6-7]

Obituary for Vivian Traylor
by Katherine L. Ward

Vivian Traylor was a native of Buffalo, New York. She was born to Golden L. and Lois C. Thompson on November 21, 1922. Upon adulthood, she married Jean Traylor, who preceded her in death, as did three of her five children and one of her grandchildren. Her remaining grandchildren still live in Buffalo, where Vivian spent a few months every year.

In 1977, Vivian and Jean moved to Oakland, California. She joined St. Augustine's Episcopal Church, and was a loyal, active member. She served on the Altar Guild, St. Monnica's Guild, Bible Study Group and various other organizations. Vivian had her hand in just about everything. She would jokingly remark that she joined everything but the choir. She was a delegate to the Alameda Deanery and the Episcopal Diocese of California’s annual convention, and was active in the Diocese on the Peace and Justice Commission and the Episcopal Church Women. She was an avid traveler, having participated in the St. Augustine's Travel Group on many occasions. Most recently, she attended the "Transformation and Renewal II Conference" at Kanuga Conference Center in Tennessee, and was already busy making arrangements to go to Los Angeles for the Episcopal Urban Caucus meeting in February 2002.

Vivian was the backbone of the local chapter of the Union of Black Episcopalians (UBE). She single-handedly kept the Northern California Chapter of UBE alive for many years through the strength of her convictions. The day before her stroke, she was calling all around the Diocese to see who would be coming to the UBE party on Sunday, December 9. Ironically, that turned out to be the day of her memorial service. A proposal to rename the local chapter after Vivian and the establishment of a youth scholarship to the UBE National Conference in her name are two of the tributes that have been paid to her for the many efforts she made on behalf of this church and community.

She did not drive but was always glad to go to the house of the Lord. She would walk, catch the bus, hitch a ride, whatever it took to get to church or to any other meeting affiliated with the church or the Diocese.

She was real, resilient, reliable, rambunctious and righteous. What you saw with Vivian was what you got. Vivian lived a full life in which she spread much joy. Her joy was unquenchable. She lived life the way it should be lived. She squeezed every drop out of it. You can be assured that there was nothing left, and that the angels were there to minister to her when she had that massive stroke on Tuesday, November 27. She died peacefully on November 29, 2001.

She was a woman who loved to talk. She would talk a hole in your head. I used to tell her that I was going to excommunicate her if she didn't stop talking so much. All Vivian would do was to preface her next remarks with the statement: "My priest says she's going to throw me out of the church, but I'm going to talk anyway." Vivian never let ANYTHING stop her from doing what she thought she should do. No amount of adversity stopped her from living fully. Everyone admired the way she "kept on keeping on" despite the many tragic events which punctuated her life.

She was a loving person whose voice will be missed. May her soul and the souls of all the faithful departed rest in peace. Amen.

Vivian leaves two sons, William and Peter Traylor, as well as her beloved granddaughters, April People and Jennienne Burke, and two great-grandchildren, Alana and Lexie, to cherish her memory. The family suggests contributions in her memory to support a UBE scholarship fund, made out to St. Augustine’s Episcopal Church, 525 29^th Street, Oakland CA 94609-3512.

The Rev. Katherine L. Ward, Ed. D., is rector of St. Augustine's Episcopal Church in Oakland, California.