Ray Vaughn

He attended Kildare Schools from 1936 to 1948, where he played basketball and ran track. He graduated as Salutatorian and attended the University of Texas on a Track Scholarship. In 1951 he left U.T. to join the Army, serving in Germany for three years during the Korean War. He worked as an engineering draftsman in Shreveport, Waskom and Houston. Then in 1958 he returned to U.T. on the GI Bill to continue his studies while working part-time. He received his B.A. in 1960 and began working toward a Master of Arts Degree. In 1962 he married Sally, who had two daughters, Toni and Leanne. In 1965 he received his M. A. degree and began working for the Texas Rehabilitation Commission, providing services to disabled persons.

He became very active at Faith United Methodist Church. He derived great pleasure in working with people in the South Austin community. Through his community work and his church connections he met Texana Conn. Texana was working with the hearing impaired patients at the State Hospital. These particular patients had multiple disabilities and were destined to live in a state institution. Texana believed they could be trained and live independently. She convinced Ray and they worked to get a group home in the South Austin community. They opened the supervised residential home, the Vaughn House, in 1969. Later the home was enlarged to accommodate up to 20 clients. Due to lack of funding the residence was forced to close in December 2002. The Job Training program, which started in 1977, is still operating.

Ray was involved with the Methodist church at the local and district levels, serving on many committees. While on the Missions Committee, he helped with several Habitats for Humanities builds, including traveling to other cities and countries to help where he was needed.

Ray retired from Texas Rehabilitation Commission in January 1993. Ray and Sally traveled extensively to such places as England, Wales, Ireland, Scotland, Germany, France, Italy, Holland, Spain, Switzerland, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Greece, Egypt, Israel, Mexico, Hawaii, Canada, Puerto Rico, Aruba, and St. Martins, and various cities throughout the United States, along with cruises to the Bahamas, Caribbean, Alaska, the Greek Islands, up the north eastern coastline and down the St. Lawrence river.

Ray always enjoyed spending time with his family living in Austin and family in the Caddo Lake area, and loved spending as much time as possible at the Caddo Lake house. He kept himself busy with his family, his volunteer work and yard work for exercise. He was thankful to have many good friends, neighbors and a very blessed life. Some of which is because of a good foundation which started at a little Texas town called Kildare.

Ray is survived by his wife of 58 years, Sally, and his daughter, Leanne Vaughn, his son-in-law Guy Lemm, his granddaughters Lindsay Ehsai, Chelsea Bassett, and Sarah Naylor, and his great-granddaughter, Lillian Nicole. He is also survived by two sisters, Laurie and her husband Claude Harris of Shreveport La, and Rebecca and her husband James Watson of Jefferson Tx. Ray was preceded in death by his parents, Effie Mae and Odie Sykes Wiggins, his sisters, Bernice Gilmore and Peggy Cromer, and his daughter Toni Lemm.