Last weekend, Pine Bluff and America witnessed a remarkable milestone: First Class Sgt. Thomas Franklin Vaughns of Felton, Arkansas, turned 105—a living emblem of courage, intellect, and grace. As Arkansas’s last living of at least 16 Tuskegee Airmen and as we know it, America’s oldest living, he stands as a testament to resilience. His celebration at Pine Bluff’s Barraque Street Missionary Baptist Church was more than a birthday—it was a century-plus spanning legacy of trailblazing service and faith.
I first learned of Vaughns in 2025, two decades into my research as a social historian specializing in Tuskegee airmen & airwomen. Embarrassed to admit he was absent from this 2012 landmark book—Pioneering African-American Aviators Featuring the Tuskegee Airmen of Arkansas—I nonetheless rejoiced when Hope Johnson, his daughter, reached out. I had believed Jerry T. Hodges, Jr. was our last living Arkansas Airman until i heard about Sgt. .Vaughns. Now, I’m humbled to stand beside this extraordinary man, affectionately adopted as family at Little Rock’s National HBCU Black Wall Street Career Fest. His legacy is my honor to protect.
A Lifetime of Service and Innovation Born on July 7th, 1920 in Lee County, Arkansas, Vaughns was drafted just months before graduating high school. Trained as a B-25 mechanic, he became an indispensable force during WWII and served again in Korea, rising to Sergeant First Class. Beyond his role in military aviation, he shaped Arkansas’s agricultural future, helping to feed and employ 1,400 through farmers’ markets in Crittenden and Jefferson counties. His election to the Arkansas Agriculture Hall of Fame in 2020 honored this lifelong devotion, according to the Northwest Arkansas Democrat Gazette..
In 2019, U.S. Senator (R) from Arkansas, John Boozman, and Congress recognized Vaughns’ contributions with a dedicated day and replacement WWII honors. Bill Clinton’s tribute letter—read aloud by my good self at the event—reminds us: this isn’t just a man turning 105; it’s a living archive of American progress.
My newly adopted dad’s been a Beacon of Light in a Dark World for generations. What makes Mr. Vaughns truly remarkable—beyond his dual-war service, his horticulture leadership, his family and his faith—is his radiant spirituality. At his 105th celebration, the church erupted in praise: this Airman wasn’t merely surviving—he’s thriving in Jesus Christ. In a time when society grapples with cynicism, climate chaos, and cultural decay, here stands a man whose foundation is filled with gratitude, joy, and grace.
For me—once a man without a home, now one of the nation’s foremost scholars on Tuskegee Airmen—meeting Vaughns was destiny.
In him, I saw not just history, but future generations reflected. He’s an elder and mentor. The bond we formed this year, I selfishly hope that we are blessed with a few more moments with him. He and his daughter, Hope, have adopted my wife and me as kin. To us, this was just as precious as any accolade given or earned in life.
Carrying the Torch
I was privileged to work closely for nearly a decade with Dr. Milton P. Crenchaw, Sr., another Arkansas aviation legend and one of the first Black civilian flight instructors in the U.S., not to mention he’s one of the very first Flight Instructors of the Tuskegee Airmen. Though Vaughns and Dr. Crenchaw never crossed paths during my interactions with them both in Arkansas, their missions were and are still breaking barriers in aviation and agriculture. Now, with Vaughns in his final chapter, I cherish every moment we have together—each handshake, each recorded story, and each prayer.
A National Call to Action
Vaughns story deserves permanent honor. At his 105th birthday, UAPB announced that it will have the Sgt. The Thomas Franklin Vaughns Memorial Scholarship, to support students of agriculture and aviation. His journey—from farm fields to fighter field, to church pew—symbolizes the promise of education, faith, and service.
But his example isn’t just about Arkansas. It’s a national call:
High School social studies learners and college history students: Study Vaughns as an Airman, an agricultural educator, and a student of God, mentoring many.
Military historians: Document those mechanics who kept our skies safe.
Community leaders: Use his example as a blueprint for servant leadership and spiritual grounding.
The Man, the Faith, the Legacy In interviews, Vaughns repeatedly honors God as the source of his life and service. At 105, he is still teaching us humility and resilience. His simple truth—“I’m thankful”—is revolutionary in today’s world of self-promotion and division.
Hope Johnson captured his essence perfectly: “He’s still pointing all the praise to Jesus.” That joy and humility are why he so deeply moves everyone he meets.
Arkansas’s only living Tuskegee Airman, and arguably America’s oldest combat Hero, is Thomas Vaughns. The story of Sgt. Thomas Franklin Vaughns is one of overcoming: from Jim Crow Arkansas to integrated skies, from 1940s segregation to 21st-century celebrations. Every year, fewer original Tuskegee Airmen remain. As of 2025, only a handful of the original group survive. Vaughns, however, isn’t just surviving—he’s still a light, and he is thriving.
Our task now is monumental: to preserve his story, to build institutions—like scholarships, oral archives, local museums—that enshrine his work. His journey from a small Arkansas dirt road to international sites of military and spiritual victory demands remembrance. He is not an Arkansas story but an American legacy!
Final Word
On behalf of Arkansas, I call on educators, faith communities, veterans’ associations, legislators, the media, and everyday citizens to honor Sgt. Vaughns’s life while he’s still here to applaud. Invest in that scholarship. Visit him. Invite him into your conversation. Record his wisdom. Build classrooms and chapels in his name.
At 105, Sgt. Thomas Franklin Vaughns remains an American hero—an Airman, an agrarian educator, a minister of soul and soil, and a son of Jesus. We should not wait until he is gone to recognize how much he remains among us.
May we honor him in life. May we preserve his legacy in perpetuity. And may we, like him, give glory to God.
Happy birthday, Sergeant Vaughns. May your flight continue.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Edmond W. Davis is an award-winning university/college professor, international journalist, social historian, a globally recognized Tuskegee Airmen scholar, and the executive director of the National HBCU Black Wall Street Career Fest. He is the author of several books and a lifelong advocate for student achievement, educational equity, and emotional wellness.
