Vivian Castleberry

In Memoriam:
Vivian Castleberry

Vivian Anderson Castleberry will be remembered as a pioneer, a mentor, a first-rate reporter and an agent of social change.

In her three decades as a reporter for the Dallas Times Herald between 1956 and 1984, she will be known as “a pioneer who punched holes in stodgy notions about what a female journalist could do.” In an era when women journalists were relegated to covering stories about home furnishings, weddings, and recipes, Vivian's colleagues at the Herald would describe her as someone who “tenaciously pushed her editors to allow her to do socially significant articles” on taboo subjects such as breast cancer and marital happiness that had received little or no coverage in years past.

By the end of her burgeoning thirty-year career at the Herald, she had covered stories spanning 57 topics and had interviewed seven first ladies.

In 1984, Vivian retired from The Herald, but her pioneering spirit led her to devoting the last two decades of her life to the issues of peace, arbitration, reconciliation, and supporting women’s issues.

In 1987, along with others, Vivian founded Peacemakers, Inc., an organization whose mission is to empower peacemakers, locally and globally, through education, communication, and action. Peacemakers, Inc. is dedicated to exploring and implementing peaceful solutions to human conflict by promoting individuals to work together to build a community of mutual respect and harmony.

Along with Peacemakers, Inc., Vivian helped establish the Castleberry Peace Institute (CPI) at the University of North Texas in 2010, the first Texas research institute dedicated to cutting-edge peace science research. The Institute works to advance an understanding of why conflicts occur, how they can be brought to an earlier and less destructive end, and what can be done to build a more durable peace in the aftermath of armed conflict.

Beyond establishing these two organizations, Vivian’s passion also extended to her founding the Women's Center of Dallas, the Women's Issues Network, the Family Place, and the Dallas Women's Foundation.

Vivian Castleberry’s legacy will endure in her recognition as a champion for peace and the enduring support of women’s concerns within the State of Texas. Her humanitarian efforts will live on in the many nonprofit organizations she has helped mentor and create.

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