Ralph Eldwin Vaughn - a DeKalb County son, has left his "positive punch" on a good portion of Middle Tennessee.
A well-known radio announcer in Smithville and McMinnville for a combined 23 years, voted "Man of the Year" by fellow Jaycee members, President & CEO of the Rutherford County Chamber of Commerce for 13 years, Chief Executive Officer of Swanson Development for five year, President & CEO of the Madison-Morgan County Georgia Chamber of Commerce for three years, Special Projects Manager for seven years at Barrett Firearms Manufacturing and President & CEO of the Tennessee Christian Chamber of Commerce for the last three years only skims the service of Vaughn’s contributions to society. He has retired – twice. He is a published author, founder of the Tennessee Radio Hall of Fame, doting husband, father and grandfather. And the list could go on and on. Yet with so many life-long achievements, Vaughn will tell you, "I am who I am and what I am by the Grace of God and radio."
When he was a six years-old first-grader at Cross Roads School, he decided what he wanted to be when he grew up. Not knowing how he would achieve his dream, he began practicing daily.
"Every day I thought about radio. I would listen to WSM, and I would try to emulate the announcers," recalled Vaughn. "I would use my mother’s bedroom dresser as a pretend radio station and her large hairbrush as the microphone.
The rehearsals, of course, were only after his daily work on the farm was completed. Son of the late J.D. and Betty Mae Vaughn Wilson, the family were sharecroppers and everyone did their part.
At 17 years-old he won an essay contest "Be a DJ for the Day." He was allowed to visit the local radio station one Saturday afternoon and read the news and introduce records. His previous 11 years of practice had paid off. The station manager, Tony Glenn Rast" quickly realized that he had the voice for radio and hired him.
"Tony offered me a part-time job making $1.25 an hour," said Ralph. "He then promoted me to fulltime at $50 a week. I thought if I could make $100 week I would truly be in the ‘big times.’ It took me five years to make $125 per week.
"But everything was relative as the price of gasoline was about 20 cents a gallon and my house payment was $70 per month, "concluded Vaughn.
"I give credit to Dr. W.E. (Doc) Vanatta, then president of Center Hill Broadcasting, for teach me the importance of sales," told Vaughn. "I have never been a salesman before WJLE and learned how to sell, be a radio personality, do play by play sports, horse shows, tractor pulls, and become the voice of the DeKalb County Fair and Smithville Fiddlers Jamboree."
Since leaving radio and embarking on new adventures, he has taken the helm of three chambers of commerce, served as CEO of Swanson Development and worked with Ronnie Barrett, the inventor of the shoulder-fired 50 caliber rifle.
"I enjoyed working with Ronnie and the Barrett team," said Vaughn. I was amazed that Ronnie is world famous as the inventor of the shoulder-fired 50-caliber rifle that is used by every branch of the US military. Ronnie is a "rock star" in the firearms industry.
Not only did I serve as Ronnie’s official publicist and biographer, I assisted him in his role with the NRA. I also got Ronnie involved with the entrepreneurial programs at Middle Tennessee State and Vanderbilt Universities. I sought branding and licensing partnerships with manufacturers, handled correspondence and networking materials and managed the Barrett Real Estate Development," he concluded.
When Vaughn left Barrett Firearms in 2013, he retired – for a while; two years to be exact. Not a good candidate for retirement, he came out of retirement and became President & CEO of the Tennessee Christian Chamber of Commerce in 2015 after a friend asked him if the word ‘retirement’ is in the bible.
"I became a Christian when I was 16 years-old. But the last three years at the Tennessee Christian Chamber has given me a platform to share my faith with hundreds of Christian business leaders, which reminded that the Lord said ‘iron will sharpen iron.’ We grow in faith through our relations with others of similar minds and faith," Vaughn explained.
Vaughn’s philosophy is be willing to lead but never try to be the star of the show. Be the "supporting cast."
"Someone wiser than me said, over 2000 years ago, ‘to be a leader, first become a servant,’" Ralph added.
When asked how he would like to be remembered, he replied, "I would like to be remembered as a person who was not afraid to step up and take charge. But again, not try to be the star; content to be a supporting cast member. No person is an island. The most important things in life is relationships."
