Funeral services for Betty Vaughn, 76, Gregory, were held on Feb. 12 at 10:30 a.m. at St. John Lutheran Church. Burial followed in the IOOF Cemetery in Gregory.
Betty Lou Vaughn was born on March 13, 1945, at the Gregory Community Hospital in Gregory, SD, to William and Mary Jane (Vosika) Manke. She was the second oldest of five children and her family often lovingly referred to her as “Bucky”. She grew up on the family farm seven miles south of Gregory. Family devotion and wonderful memories were made with siblings Larry, Beverley, Donnie, and Sandy. Life on the farm was filled with wholesome fun…from playing in their make shift “playhouse” making “mudpies” to pretending to run a “country store” with her sisters.
Life on the farm was also busy from milking cows, stripping bluegrass, turning and stacking square bales, cleaning chickens, to cooking and cleaning for the family helping their mom. The family found enjoyment while working hard and just being together. A big highlight was saving up enough money in her jar to buy a new Fourth of July dress and shoes. The love of family and hard work were forever engraved in her!
Betty attended the Climbing Hill School through eighth grade completing her schooling at Gregory High School. As customary in those days due to no busing, country kids boarded in town. She met her lifelong friend, Carol Schweigert Stevicks, while staying at Carol’s Grandma Burr’s house. Betty also stayed with her beloved Grandma Mollie Manke who instilled the love of Jesus in the family.
She was baptized and confirmed into the Lutheran faith. She was a lifetime member of the St. John Lutheran Church in Gregory and the Lutheran Women’s Missionary League. Her faith was strong and unwavering until the very end! There was never a doubt in her mind that she was going to heaven. Her church life was extremely important to Betty. The church family and her friendships there were very dear to her. Serving at funeral dinners, past Sunday Bible classes, and the ladies Friday workdays were some of the activities that she enjoyed.
Betty met her loving husband, Paul Vaughn, at a dance in Colome, SD. They were united in marriage on Nov. 3, 1962. They had 53 years of devoted marriage together before Paul passed away from pancreatic cancer on May 16, 2016. To this union one daughter, Rhonda Lou, was born. She was the apple of their eye! Later son-in-law Tom Waterbury joined the family. Tom was truly like a son to them, and they had a very special relationship.
In 1968, Paul and Betty began their career endeavors in the insurance business with the formation of the Vaughn Insurance Agency. While Paul was in the forefront of the business, it was Betty who was the behind-the-scenes backbone of the day-to-day operations! She managed the paperwork while often jokingly saying she also has to manage Paul! The business was awarded many accolades in part to Betty’s contributions and hard work!
Never one to sit idly, she was always doing something….and that something was always done to perfection and usually in a big way! She was a woman of many talents. Her Christmas goodies, baked goods, and scrumptious desserts are legendary with her family and friends! Rhonda’s friends would often ask if there was going to be a “Betty treat” at parties. One of her specialties was beautifully decorated white cakes even making a few wedding cakes. Hosting family get-togethers created cherished memories with her family and was something she loved to do! She was an impeccable seamstress making many clothes for herself and Rhonda. There wasn’t anything she couldn’t mend. One of her biggest projects was making all the dresses for Rhonda’s wedding plus numerous other details like flower bouquets and decorative accessories! For family members, it’s easy for them to spot something made by Betty!
Betty was truly a beautiful person with her dazzling smile and classy style. However, she was always the most humble, selfless, and kind person. Her family will always be grateful for her helpfulness, generosity, and protective nature. Her biggest love was her daughter Rhonda. They had an incredibly devoted and loving relationship. They thoroughly enjoying being together and were happiest working on some sort of project together.
In 1995 after years of saving and planning, Betty used yet another of her talents and designed Paul and her dream home east of Gregory. She loved to decorate her home especially at Christmas. The Vaughn Christmas lighting displays were dazzling. She thoroughly enjoyed her yard, watching the trees grow, building rock gardens, water fountains, and her flowers…..her beautiful, beautiful flowers. She also had passions for collecting teapots, Avon Cape Cod dishes, ceramic dolls, Christmas villages, and anything Victorian! She was the most organized person you would ever find and had a knack for always having what you needed. It was joked about in the family that if you needed something Betty would have it, and she could find it! You wouldn’t find a more organized person. Tom will miss her detailed diaries on the weather especially rain. Spending time at home was a joy to her! She also loved going for drives, staying in touch on Facebook, and enjoying anything Rhonda was involved in. She was an avid fan of the Gregory County Polka Band where she loved listening to Rhonda play her saxophone. After Paul died, most evenings were spent at Tom and Rhonda’s just enjoying each other’s company or spending time with her sister Bev.
In the fall of 2020, Betty started developing health issues due to cardiomyopathy. Her stamina and strength began to falter. On May 18, 2021, she underwent open heart surgery to correct her thickened left ventricle. Complications occurred during surgery and her aorta tore resulting in major blood loss. Betty was on life support for several weeks and was severely debilitated. Doctors were often not optimistic due to numerous setbacks while spending 125 days in the Mayo ICU, but she was a fighter. Miraculously after five months to the amazement of her doctors and physical therapists, she was able to start walking and finally returned to the Gregory hospital. Unfortunately, shortly thereafter she developed pneumonia along with Covid. She was flown to Sioux Falls and never could bounce back. The final straw was the development of seizures, and she spent the last three weeks of her life in a coma. She died very peacefully in Rhonda’s arms on February 7, 2022, surrounded by her loving sisters and her devoted Tom. She had put up a truly tremendous and courageous fight during the 266 straight days in the hospital. She was 76 years, 10 months and 25 days.
Betty is survived by her loving daughter, Rhonda, and her husband Tom Waterbury; siblings: Larry Manke of Pierre, SD, Beverley, Donnie both of Gregory, SD, and Sandy (Gene) of O’Neill, NE; sisters-in-law DeAnne Vaughn of O’Neill, NE, and Rosemary (Lamone) Kerner of Burke, SD; and brother-in-law Clayton Steele of Burke, SD; and numerous nieces and nephews.
She was preceded in death by her dear husband Paul; parents, William and Mary Manke; mother and father-in-law, Lyle and Cecil Vaughn; in-laws Jim Keegan, Lyle and Loretta Vaughn Jr., Adamae and Don Moody, Darrell and Inez Tech, Ray Vaughn, Sharon and Helmer Jensen, Karon Steele, and nephews Jay Keegan and Lemars Manke, niece Mary Ellwanger, and her precious little dog Patchy Boy
Betty was a loving wife, sister, friend, mother-in-law and especially mother! She will be greatly missed.
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