David Lemond Praytor
 (Posted 10/6/2009 01:54 pm)
 David Lemond Praytor, of Austin, Texas died Saturday, September 19, 2009 at his home.  Graveside Services were held at 2:00pm Monday, October 5, at the Wortham, Texas, Cemetery, Pastor Jay Fraze officiating.          Honorary guards were the Texas department of Public Safety and the U.S. Air Force. The emblem of the Texas Rangers will be emblazed on his tombstone. 
    David was born January 7, 1931, in Limestone County, Texas, the youngest of three boys of Thomas Calvin Praytor and Etta Rosebud Spakes Praytor.  He graduated from Mexia High School with many honors including some in track, volleyball, President of the Future Farmers of America (F.F.A.), Vice President of the Science Club, Class Favorite, Most Popular, Junior Rotarian, Who’s Who, and third place in F.F.A.  Leadership District Contest. 
    He held many positions in F.F.A. activities.  Next he served four years as a sergeant in the U.S. Air Force.  He attended the University of Texas in Austin before going to graduate from the State of Texas Law Enforcement Academy (D.P.S.) as a Texas Highway Patrolman. He was one of the officers selected to guard wounded Texas Governor John Connally following the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.  He also taught Defensive Driving and was a mentor to new recruits. He was then promoted to narcotics Officer where he received special recognition. Upon retirement from the agency in spring of 1986, he was commissioned a Special Texas Ranger, a position he continued to hold. 
    He married his Mexia High School sweetheart, Shirley Agness Vaughan, on April 3, 1953, at the First Methodist Church, Mexia. Shirley is the daughter of John Wilbert (Jack) Vaughn and Mary Floriede Cook Vaughn. “The word “Always is inscribed inside their Wedding rings, the couple had one child, Charlotte Victoria, born July 16, 1957.  As a child Charlotte said her daddy was “a hightrol” and she pinned the buttons onto his uniforms.
He was always a loving and loyal husband and father, attentive to detail, and a very hard worker. There was no task he couldn’t accomplish whether working on automobiles, appliances, any mechanics, painting, drawing, gardening, cooking, outdoor and indoor construction.  He tested second place in a statewide dexterity test administered by the Texas Employment Commission.  He was a runner up at the Law Enforcement Academy Boxing Tournament.  He had a strong Christian belief in God and Jesus and will be missed by his family, co-workers, and many friends.
     “He taught me lessons all my life. I was the literary one; he was the practical one.  He was first to take me out to eat at a restaurant, to drink my first cup of coffee, to appreciate the Hispanic culture with dozens of travel adventures in Mexico, Central and South America, even the Galapagos Islands, to enjoy nature and fishing and arrowhead hunting and the beauty surrounding us.  Every path I took led me to his side.  The Void will never be filled.” ~Shirley
    Arrangements are under the direction of Cook Walden Funeral Home, 6100 N. Lamar Blvd, Austin, Tx, 78752. (512) 454-5611.
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