Vaughn Curtis Speer was born April 5, 1924 in Milford, Iowa to Ira Fletcher and Margaret Christina Speer and grew up there with his sister, Shirley Ann. As a young man he often joined his father and grandfather to purchase cattle and learned the livestock business which fueled his desire to learn more. He graduated from Milford Consolidated Schools in 1942 and completed one semester of college at Iowa State before enlisting in the Army Air Corps, attaining the rank of Staff Sergeant. He was stationed on Russell Island in the South Pacific and also the Central Pacific from 1942 - 1946.

In 1946 he returned home to resume his studies at Iowa State earning a BS in Animal Science in 1949. He met his future wife, Meg (Mary Elizabeth Graf) at a Frisbie House event in Ames, and gave her a diamond before she left for Minneapolis to complete her dietetic internship. They married in 1947 in Elkader, Iowa. Vaughn earned a master's in Animal Nutrition (1951). From 1951 - 1953 he worked in the Product Control Department at Ralston Purina Company in St. Louis, MO. He moved his family back to Ames in 1953 and lived in Pammel Court while completing his doctorate in Animal Nutrition (1957), with minors in biochemistry and physiology. Vaughn and Meg's first child, David, was born in 1948. Three more children would be welcomed: James, Beth, and Diana.

Vaughn accepted a position as a Research Associate (1953 - 1957), and then as an Assistant Professor (1958 - 1961), Associate Professor (1961 - 1966), and Professor (1966 - 1990) at Iowa State in the Department of Animal Science. From 1960 until the time retired, he served as Chair of the Swine Nutrition Research Section within Animal Science. He retired in 1990 as Professor Emeritus.

He became an internationally recognized expert in swine nutrition lecturing in 25 foreign countries, often accompanied by Meg. Vaughn was a prolific researcher, publishing over 200 articles concerning swine nutrition and management. His early studies concerned passive immunity of the mother sow transmitted to the young pig, and the absorption of antibodies. In his later work, he determined the amino acid requirements for pregnancy and lactation in swine. The National Research Council (NRC) recommendations for "Nutrient Requirements of Swine" are based on the research Dr. Speer and his students completed. His expertise was evidenced by his appointments to five different NRC committees, including the most recent one that he chaired on the Nutrient Requirements of the Swine. Vaughn's students, which number in the hundreds, came from 19 different countries, and they became leaders in academia, government , private business, and industry. He received numerous awards and citations during his 40 year career, including Honorary Master Pork Producer from the Iowa Pork Producers Association in 1966, and service awards from American Soybean Association. The Speers endowed a graduate student scholarship given annually in the Animal Science Department. In 2008, Vaughn and Meg were presented with the National Service Award from ISU, for "consistently supporting the daily work of the ISU Alumni Association in connecting alumni, students, and friends to ISU."

In 1959, Dr. Speer was host and guide for Premier Nikita Khrushchev throughout Iowa, a first for a communist leader. While Khrushchev was in Iowa, Vaughn was a commentator for the local NBC, CBS, and ABC affiliated television stations.

After he retired, Vaughn remained active in the Ames and Iowa State communities, especially in the development and growth of Reiman Gardens. He and Meg were co-presidents of the Reiman Garden Cohorts from 1998 - 1999. They both became Master Gardeners. In addition, an endowment made by the Speers was used in the creation of the Mahlstede Building, which allows guests at Reiman to view the gardens through floor-to-ceiling windows. He volunteered for many years as a gardener for Reiman Gardens, maintained the garden at 20th and Grand for the Kiwanis, and provided vegetables he grew to the Row for the Hungry. He loved his gardens, especially the ones he grew at the Frandsens, and proudly showed off his prized flowers at his home.

Vaughn loved his wife, who died in 2013, and his children, their spouses, and grandchildren: David (d. 2012) and Joyce Speer and sons Ryan and Rob; Jim and Julie Speer and sons Brad, Matt, and Kevin; Beth and Ron Frandsen and daughters Lauren and Alyssa; and Diana and Bob Sarussi and daughters Alexa, Madeline, and Gabriella.

Vaughn and Meg also have eleven great grandchildren: Katelyn, Madison and Ella Speer (daughters of Ryan and Stacy); Andrew and Olivia Speer (children of Kevin); Mayla and Molly Speer (daughters of Rob and Christina); Autym Speer (daughter of Brad and Wendee); Trent and Kendra Speer (children of Matt), and Gracie Orem (daughter of Madeline and Quentin). In addition, he had many nieces and nephews.

Vaughn loved to golf and made his first hole-in-one in 2003. In 2005, he played over 90 games of golf! Later he also enjoyed bowling.

He and Meg were generous donors to Reiman Gardens, Iowa State University and their church,
United Church of Christ, Congregational. They were Order of the Knoll members, and lifetime and sustaining members of the ISU Alumni Association, and the Memorial Union.

A graveside memorial service will be held on July 5, 2023, at 9:00a.m. at the Iowa State University Cemetery, with a visitation held from 10:30 - 12:00p.m. at Ames United Church of Christ, 217 6th Street, Ames, Iowa 50010 following burial.

In lieu of flowers, gifts may be directed to the Mary E. and Vaughn C. Speer Endowment, Reiman Gardens, 2505 University Boulevard, P.O. Box 2230, Ames, Iowa 50010 or United Church of Christ Congregational, 217 Sixth Street, Ames, Iowa, 50010, or Vaughn and Meg Speer Graduate Education Award, Department of Animal Science, Iowa State University, 2505 University Boulevard, P.O. Box 2230, Ames, Iowa 50010.

Online condolence may be directed to www.grandonfuneralandcremationcare.com