Army Sgt. Jason W. Vaughn

Died May 10, 2007 Serving During Operation Iraqi Freedom

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29, of Iuka, Miss.; assigned to the 5th Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division, Fort Lewis, Wash.; died May 10 in Baqubah, Iraq, of wounds sustained when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle.

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Mississippi soldier killed in Iraq

By Chris Talbott

The Associated Press

JACKSON, Miss. — A Mississippi native serving in Iraq was killed by a roadside bomb May 10.

The Department of Defense and the family of Army Sgt. Jason W. Vaughn confirmed his death May 11.

Vaughn, 29, of Iuka, died from wounds he suffered when the bomb was detonated near his vehicle in Baqubah.

Vaughn was serving his second tour of duty in Iraq with the Stryker Brigade based in Fort Lewis, Wash. He had been in Iraq for 24 months over the last four years.

He was assigned to the 5th Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division.

Vaughn first served in Iraq from Nov. 2003 to Nov. 2004. He returned in July 2006 and was scheduled to come home from a 15-month tour in October.

Vaughn’s father, Walter Vaughn, confirmed his son’s death but was spending time with family May 11 and deferred questions until May 12.

Vaughn joined the Army in 2002 and received his initial training at Fort Benning, Ga., Fort Lewis spokeswoman Catherine Caruso said.

She said he held the rank of specialist at the time of his death and was promoted to sergeant posthumously. He had received the Army Good Conduct Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Global War on Terror Expeditionary Medal and the Global War on Terror Service Medal before his death.

More than 50 members of the military with strong ties to Mississippi have been killed in Iraq and Afghanistan since fighting began. Vaughn’s death brings the total to 54, an unofficial Associated Press count shows.

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Father: Soldier foretold death in Iraq

The Associated Press

JACKSON, Miss. — The father of an Iuka soldier who was killed by a bomb while serving in Iraq said his son had a feeling he would die in the conflict.

Sgt. Jason W. Vaughn visited with his family in March while on leave midway through his second tour of duty in Iraq.

Walter Vaughn said his son spent more time than usual with his family during the visit.

“He had an intuition about things and I think he knew what was going to happen. So he spent more time with his mother and family when he was here,” Walter Vaughn said. “While we were talking he said he had seen too many things and had too many close calls, and he got the feeling his luck was running out.

“He really didn’t want to go back, but he had to go because he had friends over there who needed him.”

Jason Vaughn, 29, died from wounds he suffered when the bomb was detonated near his vehicle in Baqubah.

Vaughn was serving his second tour of duty in Iraq with the Stryker Brigade based in Fort Lewis, Wash. He had been in Iraq for 24 months over the last four years and was scheduled to return from deployment in October.

He was assigned to the 5th Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division.

Vaughn also visited as many friends as he could and one of his former teachers at Tishomingo County High School, family members said in an article at www.clarionledger.com.

Alisa Parson, his aunt, said she spent as much time as she could with Vaughn on his most recent visit. She still remembers his last embrace.

“He always greeted me with a smile, a great big hug and a kiss no matter how old he was. Most teenage boys wouldn’t have done that but he didn’t care,” Parson said. “The day before he left he gave me another big hug and said, ‘I love Aunt Sissy. I’ll see you in December.’ ”

Vaughn was due to return home in December and planned to move to South Carolina to live with friends, his family said.

“If he was your friend, he was very loyal to you. He was the kind of person that would give you the shirt off his back to help you,” Parson said.

Along with his parents, Vaughn also leaves behind a stepmother, a brother and three sisters.

Funeral arrangements are still being made.

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Iuka soldier’s funeral tentatively set for this weekend

By Holbrook Mohr

The Associated Press

JACKSON, Miss. — Funeral services for Army Sgt. Jason Walter Vaughn are set for May 19 at the Gospel Lighthouse Pentecostal Church in Tishomingo, the only place in the area big enough to accommodate the easygoing soldier’s many friends, his father said May 16.

Vaughn, 29, of Iuka, died May 10 when a roadside bomb exploded near the vehicle he was riding in near Baqubah, Iraq. He was serving his second tour in the war-torn country and was a member of the Stryker Brigade based in Fort Lewis, Wash.

The soldier’s body is expected to arrive in Corinth on May 18. Visitation will be held at the church that evening, said his father, Walter Vaughn.

Plans for the May 19 funeral are tentatively set for 1 p.m., but the time hinges on the arrival of the soldier’s remains, Walter Vaughn said.

Walter Vaughn said dozens of his son’s friends and Army colleagues would likely attend the funeral services, and he was told members of the Patriot Guard would be there, as well as some politicians.

“He had friends all over the place. He was an outgoing type of person,” Walter Vaughn told The Associated Press in a telephone interview May 16. “The world lost a leader. My son was a born leader.”

Vaughn first served in Iraq from November 2003 to November 2004. He returned to Iraq in July 2006 and was scheduled to come home from a 15-month tour in October. He was a recipient of the Army Good Conduct Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Global War on Terror Expeditionary Medal and the Global War on Terror Service Medal.

Funeral services for another Mississippian who died in Iraq on May 14 have not been announced.

Air Force Staff Sgt. John T. Self, 29, of Pontotoc, was killed by a roadside bomb in Baghdad, according to his family.

Self was a member of the 314th Security Forces Squadron out of Little Rock Air Force Base, according base officials. He had been in Iraq since September. This was his fourth tour, and he had volunteered for the mission because he wanted to serve his country, his family said.

The latest deaths bring to 55 the number of people from Mississippi or with strong ties to the state to die in Iraq and Afghanistan, according to an unofficial AP count.

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Mississippi soldier killed in Iraq laid to rest

The Associated Press

TISHOMINGO, Miss. — Army Sgt. Jason W. Vaughn was awarded three medals posthumously during his funeral service May 19.

Vaughn was one of two members of the military from northeast Mississippi killed in Iraq within five days of each other earlier this month. He was given the Bronze Star Medal, the Purple Heart and the Combat Infantryman’s Badge during a ceremony at Gospel Lighthouse Pentecostal Church.

He was buried with full military honors at Oak Grove Cemetery in Iuka, the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal reported May 19.

His widow, father and mother were given an American flag during the ceremony.

Military leaders hailed Vaughn’s sacrifice.

“I’ll get up and go vote when I think it’s too cold and rainy because this young soldier died for the great principles of the Constitution, because of the great freedoms he pledged his life for,” said Maj. Gen. Harold Cross, the adjutant general of Mississippi’s Army National Guard.

Vaughn, 29, of Iuka, died May 10 when a roadside bomb exploded near his vehicle in Baqubah, Iraq. He was serving his second tour and was a member of the Stryker Brigade based in Fort Lewis, Wash.

Vaughn first served in Iraq from November 2003 to November 2004. He returned to Iraq in July 2006 and was scheduled to come home from a 15-month tour in October. He was a recipient of the Army Good Conduct Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Global War on Terror Expeditionary Medal and the Global War on Terror Service Medal.

Funeral services for another Mississippian who died in Iraq last May 14 will be May 23 in Pontotoc.

Air Force Staff Sgt. John T. Self, 29, of Pontotoc, was killed by a roadside bomb in Baghdad, his family said.

Self was a member of the 314th Security Forces Squadron out of Little Rock Air Force Base. He had been in Iraq since September.

The latest deaths bring to 55 the number of people from Mississippi or with strong ties to the state to die in Iraq and Afghanistan, an unofficial Associated Press count shows.