South Florida woman who survived polio as a child now helps thousands of children through nonprofit

Doctors didn’t expect Elizabeth King to survive after she contracted polio at just 3 years old. Decades later, she’s not only defied the odds but has dedicated her life to helping others, providing scholarships, mentorship and holiday gifts to thousands of children in need. King, who has undergone 37 surgeries and continues to experience post-polio symptoms, is the founder of Suits, Stilettos and Lipstick Foundation , a nonprofit organization that has spent 25 years empowering young women and supporting families. A childhood marked by illness and determination King was born in the Dominican Republic, where she contracted polio at the age of 3. “We did not have the vaccines in the Dominican Republic so I was part of the epidemic that hit the country,” she said. Doctors did not expect her to survive, but her mother refused to accept that prognosis. King, the youngest of five siblings, was eventually brought to the United States, where she began years of medical treatment. “My surgeries began when I was 6 years old and by the time I was 14, I had had 32 of them,” she said. Despite the physical challenges, King developed a positive attitude that would become a defining part of her life. As a teenager, she began a tradition that continues to symbolize her strength. “As soon as I was allowed to wear makeup, I asked my sisters and my mother to wait for me outside the surgery room with a red lipstick,” King said. The lipstick became much more than a beauty accessory. “That was my war paint. That was my symbol that I was going to be OK,” she explained. Defying the odds through education and family Although King continues to experience complications from polio and sometimes uses a wheelchair, she has never allowed her condition to define what she can accomplish. “Instilled in my mind was nothing could stop me,” she said. King went on to earn a doctorate in education and spent 20 years working with children in public schools. She also built a family, becoming a wife, mother and grandmother despite being told she would not survive childhood. “I wasn’t supposed to have children just like I wasn’t supposed to live,” King said. Her experiences helped shape her belief that the hardships she endured could serve a greater purpose. “I feel that my life’s purpose and everything that I’ve gone through is for a reason,” she said. Turning personal struggles into a mission to help others King eventually founded Suits, Stilettos and Lipstick Foundation, an organization whose name reflects her personality and outlook on life. The suits represent professionalism, while the red lipstick symbolizes the determination that carried her through years of medical challenges. The stilettos have a particularly personal meaning. “And because I can’t wear stilettos, I’ve never been able to wear stilettos, I wear them vicariously,” King explained. “I wear them in my heart. I wear them by seeing other women.” For the past 25 years, the foundation has provided college scholarships and mentorship opportunities to young women. It has also helped make Christmas brighter for approximately 90,000 children in need. Now, King is working toward another milestone: reaching 100,000 children through the organization’s holiday gift efforts. “We’re looking to provide toys to 10,000 more. And that would get us to 100,000 children served within 25 years,” she said. A life filled with gratitude For King, her accomplishments are about more than overcoming the illness that changed her childhood. They’re about using the life she was given to make a difference for others. During her conversation with Local 10, King became emotional while reflecting on her journey and what she hopes to accomplish in the future. “I am a woman of faith,” she said. From a little girl facing a life-threatening illness to an educator, mother, grandmother and nonprofit founder, King has spent decades challenging the limits once placed on her future. And as she looks ahead to the next chapter, her message is one of gratitude. “Thank you God for giving me so many blessings,” King said. To donate: If you’d like to make a monetary donation toward a Good News South Florida story or project, click here. Local 10 has established the Local 10 Fund with The Miami Foundation and 100% of your donation will go toward the cause you designate in the “additional information” box. To volunteer or submit a story idea: If you’d like to volunteer for a Good News South Florida project or would like to submit a story for consideration, email [email protected] . Good News South Florida airs Fridays on the Local 10 morning news at 10 a.m. It will encore Fridays at 3:30 p.m. and Sunday mornings, beginning at 6 a.m. Copyright 2026 by WPLG Local10.com - All rights reserved.