Obituary of Wanda Vaughn Yarborough

It is with great sadness that the family of Wanda Elizabeth Vaughn Yarborough announces her sudden passing on Saturday, November 10, 2018 at the age of 72.

Wanda was born May 1, 1946 at Freedman’s Hospital in Washington, DC, to Lewis M. and the late Mildred (Miller) Vaughn, Sr. She was the oldest of five children and was reared in Staunton, Virginia. She attended T.C. Edmunds Elementary, D.W. Davis School and Booker T. Washington High School, from where she graduated as Valedictorian in 1964. During high school, Wanda served as President of the National Honor Society and the Library Club. She sang in the school choir and was manager of the girls’ basketball team.

At an early age, Wanda was baptized at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Staunton and later transferred her membership to Mount Zion Baptist Church. At Mount Zion she was a member of the Intermediate Choir, the Junior Missionaries and the Girl Scouts.

Wanda received a degree in Business Administration from Hampton University in May of 1968. After receiving her degree, she moved to Washington, DC and began her long career in the federal government.

In 1969 she married Charles V. Yarborough, Jr., her husband of nearly 50 years. They lived in Seat Pleasant, Maryland; Columbia, Maryland; and Cincinnati, Ohio before settling in Reston, Virginia, where they made their home for the past 40 years and reared their daughters, Chanda and Laura.

Wanda worked in human resources at the Department of Housing & Urban Development, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Consumer Protection Agency. In 1981, she moved to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in Reston where she worked until her retirement. She retired as a Personnel Specialist with the USGS on January 1, 2010 after 41 years of service.

She was a caring and devoted wife and mother, committed to providing her family with a loving home and giving her daughters experiences and opportunities that allowed them to grow into the women they are today. She was beloved in her community and made friends everywhere she went. There wasn’t a grocery store, restaurant or parking lot in Reston where Wanda would not stop to chat with people along the way.

In recent years, she expanded her love and care to her beloved grandchildren and had the opportunity to travel with her family to India, Spain, Portugal and Disney World.

Wanda will be greatly missed by her husband Charles, her father, Lewis M. Vaughn, Sr. of Staunton, VA, her daughters, Chanda (Anirudh) of Amsterdam, The Netherlands, and Laura (Emmanuel) of Arlington, VA, her sisters Mildred Louise (Calvin) Lyles of Temple Hills, MD and Patricia Jordan of Tallahassee FL, her brother Lewis (Wendy) Vaughn, Jr. of Marietta, GA, her sister-in-law Lila (Shari) Yarborough of Oakland, CA, her aunt, Mary Frances Miller Phillips of Waco, Texas; her grandchildren Aaron and Amaya Chaudhry of Amsterdam, The Netherlands. She will also be greatly missed by her numerous nieces, nephews, extended family, and many, many friends.

She was preceded in death by her mother, Mildred, and her sister, Adrian Vaughn.

A funeral service will be held to honor the memory and celebrate the life of Wanda on Monday, November 19, 2018 at 10:00am at Heritage Fellowship Church, 2501 Fox Mill Road, Reston, VA 20191.

If desired, donations may be made in her memory to Cornerstones, a community non-profit in Reston.