Mother Teresa was born in 1910 in Skopje, Yugoslavia and decided to join religious life at a young age. She took her vows at age 21 and joined the Sisters of Loretto. In 1950, she received permission from the Vatican to start the Missionaries of Charity in Calcutta, India to care for the poor and needy. Over her lifetime, she opened homes and hospices throughout Calcutta and received numerous honors including the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979 for her humanitarian work helping the poor and sick in India.