Ann Vail Roberts, a social worker, painter, and mother of five, died on Nov. 22 at her Lake Forest home after a brief illness. She was 88 years old. Her husband, Bill, predeceased her in 2006. She is survived by daughters Laura (Geo) Estes, Anne Roberts, Elizabeth Roberts, Mary Roberts Ziko and son Michael (Julie) Roberts, as well as 7 grandchildren and 2 great grandchildren. Ann Roberts was born on July 30, 1928 in Cincinnati, Ohio, the only daughter of Elizabeth Yeiser and Derrick Tilton Vail, professor of ophthalmology at the University of Cincinnati. She attended the College Preparatory School for Girls in Cincinnati and went on to Smith College in 1946. After spending her junior year in Paris, a life changing event, she graduated from Smith in 1950. She moved to Chicago and became a docent at the Art Institute of Chicago, primarily taking children around the museum on tours. In 1953 she spent four months traveling around the Middle East with two friends. She went on to work at the Institute of International Education in New York from 1954-1957, where she helped manage study abroad programs for students. In 1957, she married William John Roberts, a widower, and became the mother of two young girls, Laura and Anne. Besides caring for her new family, she became involved with several community organizations and took up sculpture as a hobby, studying with a well-known local artist named Abbott Pattison. The family moved to Lake Forest, IL in 1963, by which point they had two more daughters, Elizabeth and Mary. They adopted a son, Michael, in 1970. She and her husband travelled extensively, and loved it. Ann continued with her volunteer work at the First Presbyterian Church and enrolled in the Loyola School of Social Work in Chicago in 1977. After obtaining her MSW degree in 1979, she worked in the Special Education District of Lake County for 12 years. She retired in 1992 and devoted her time to community service and painting, working in the studio of Alain Gavin, a well-known Evanston artist. She moved to Lake Forest Place with her husband in 1998, where she continued to volunteer in many capacities and paint. She helped run an art class and a bridge group, served on several committees, and wrote for the Oak Leaf. She resided at Lake Forest Place for 18 years. A memorial service will be held at 4:30 pm on Thursday, December 8 in the Vail Room at Lake Forest Place, 1100 Pembridge Dr. Reception will immediately follow. Memorial gifts are suggested to the First Presbyterian Church of Lake Forest, 700 Sheridan Rd, Lake Forest, IL 60045, attn: Vail/Roberts Choir Fund, or to A Safe Place, 2710 17th St., Zion, IL 60099.