Vivian Frances Williams, 88, passed away peacefully on Friday, July 28, 2023. The third of four daughters, Vivian was born on January 26, 1935, in Meridian, Mississippi, to Frank Herbert Shortridge and Vivian Vaughan Shortridge. Her family later moved to Jackson, where she graduated from Central High School. Vivian then attended the University of Mississippi and was a member of Chi Omega sorority. She married her high school sweetheart, Charles "Charlie" Williams, in 1955.

In 1957, an 8-month-pregnant Vivian joined Charlie in Germany, where he was serving in the Army. Their first child, Angela, was born in Regensburg. Two years later, the family of three moved back to the US, and Charlie began his career in geology. They welcomed three more children: Leslie in 1962, Hal in 1966, and their youngest daughter, Erin, made their family of six complete in 1968.

The Williams Family lived in a number of cities and states, finally moving back "home" to Jackson before Hal was born. Through the years Vivian worked for Dudley Hughes at Hughes and Hughes, at the Mississippi Department of Archives and History, the Education Center, and the Mississippi Heart Association. She was a proud member of First Presbyterian Church and an active participant in extracurricular church activities, specifically the Explorers Bible Study.

Vivian looked forward to her luncheons with dear friends. She was known to be the first to call someone in need of a hand, laugh, or hug and always showed up with a meal. She loved music, dancing and singing around the house and playing chopsticks on the piano for her grandchildren. She had a passion for gardening. Her backyards were always filled with beautiful plants and trees, roses curved around trellises, pots full of color and sweet smells.

But it was family that meant everything to Vivian. A beloved mother, grandmother, and great grandmother, "Mimi," as she was affectionately known, showered her grandchildren and great grandchildren with gifts and "happies" for every occasion. She never missed a chance to put a worm on a grandkid's hook or take a group to feed the geese. Vivian loved nothing more than a house full of little feet and laughter, people of all ages sharing heaping piles of banana pudding and stories. She and Charlie had plenty of stories themselves. They traveled the world together, sometimes just the two of them, sometimes with close friends or with their children or grandchildren.

Vivian always found a reason to gather–nothing and no one was too small to celebrate. She certainly left her mark on the lives of all who knew her.

Vivian was preceded in death by her parents and sisters, Dolly Ann Morris, Bertie Mae Wade, and Betty Jean Collette Beaver, as well as by her husband of 66 years, Charles H. Williams, Jr., and her oldest daughter, Angela Williams Lang (John).

She is survived by her brother, Frank H. Shortridge, Jr., as well as three of her children, Leslie Hines (Todd), Charles "Hal" Williams III, and Erin Chevalier (Steven); by her grandchildren, Jilly Escudé (Mark), Preston Miller (Monty), Vivian Robinson (Grant), Vaughan Coffin (Robert), Allison Mangialardi (John Finley), Ethan Chevalier, and Ava Chevalier; by her great grandchildren, Francie Escudé, Mark Charles Escudé, Sophie Escudé, Beatrice Escudé, Charlie Coffin, Todd Coffin, Lillian Robinson, Price Mangialardi, and Archie Miller; and by several nieces and nephews.

A service will be held at First Presbyterian Church on Thursday, August 3, 2023, at 11:00 in the morning. A visitation will be held at 9:30 in the morning before the service. Memorials may be made to the ALS Association, Louisiana-Mississippi Chapter, 14241 Coursey Blvd. A12374, Baton Rouge, LA 70817, and to Missions at First Presbyterian Church in Jackson, MS.