Fallen Soldier Travis Vaughn, a Cedar Falls Alum, to be Honored With Memorial, Ceremony

A Cedar Falls man who died while serving in Afghanistan will be honored with a ceremony and memorial Saturday.

Travis Vaughn, a member of the U.S. Army 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment based out of Fort Campbell, Ky., died in a helicopter crash in Afghanistan Feb. 18, 2007.

A ceremony to place a permanent marker at Cedar Falls High School honoring the 1999 CFHS graduate will be held at 3 p.m. June 29. The school will be open for tours from 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday as part of Sturgis Falls.

Flags for Freedom Outreach, a Lake Ozark, Mo., organization, donated the marker.

Iowa Army National Guard Maj. Garrett Gingrich, a Waterloo firefighter and a veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan, will speak. Steve and Sue Ralston of Waterloo, parents of U.S. Army Sgt. Ian Ralston, who was wounded in Iraq in 2010, will also participate, as will other families of fallen and wounded service members. Savannah DeGroote of Cedar Falls will sing.