Willa Dean Vaughn, 95, of Bartlett, Tennessee, formerly of Winfield, Alabama, passed away on September 13, 2023, surrounded by her family in Memphis, Tennessee.
DonaRee Willa Dean Carter Vaughn, known to family and friends as "Dean" or "Willa Dean," was born on January 2, 1928, in Cordova, Alabama, to Arvie C. Carter and Mittie O. Beasley Carter. She was the fourth of five children born to the family.
On July 25, 1959, she and Ernest Vaughn were married in Smithville, Mississippi and enjoyed 55 years of marriage.
She attended school in Winfield but was unable to graduate due to family circumstances. She would become a powerful example to her children by completing her GED later in life.
She worked in the textile mills, retail stores, and school cafeteria; but her main career was being a homemaker for her family. She worked tirelessly in the family's garden, growing and preserving food and was a wonderful seamstress, sewing most of the clothes she and her children wore.
Dean was a longtime member of the Winfield Church of Christ.
She had a passion for genealogy and learning about her family tree. She was a member of the Marion County Genealogical Society and worked with her husband for several years publishing their monthly tracts. Dean was also a member of the American Legion Auxiliary Post 100 and served as a president of that local chapter. She was a member of the Keenagers group at the Winfield First Baptist Church for many years, and she loved a good game of canasta with her friends.
She was preceded in death by her infant son, Michael Ernest Vaughn; her husband, Ernest Vaughn; her parents, Arvie and Mittie Carter; her siblings, Norma Wilson, Bill Carter, Cordie Carter, and RJ Carter.
She is survived by her daughters, Jana (Carson) Smith of Memphis, Tennessee, and Lajuana (Mark) Kledzik of Bartlett, Tennessee; granddaughters, Jessica (Oscar) Rodriguez Analco, Crystal (David) Magruder, and Nicole Kledzik; great-granddaughters, Devon, Madalynn, Eleanor, Annette, and Hattie Rose Magruder; and a host of nieces and nephews.
Funeral services for Dean will be held on Saturday, September 16th at 2:00 p.m. from the Bowen Funeral Home Chapel with burial to follow in the Winfield City Cemetery. The visitation will be held on Saturday from 1:00 p.m. until 2:00 p.m. service time at the funeral home. James Wyers is the officiating minister.
Bowen Funeral Home of Winfield, Alabama serving the Vaughn family.
