Martha H. Vaughn, 85, died peacefully September 28th at her home, surrounded by family.
Born and raised in Binghamton, NY to Barbara and George Hinman, a longtime political advisor to Nelson Rockefeller, Martha graduated from Dana Hall School in Wellesley, MA, and Wheaton College in Norton, MA.
Martha worked in New York City in her early 20s for Mutual of New York and Readers Digest, and it was there she met George “Arky” Vaughn III, an engineer from Staten Island, NY working with Alcoa Inc. They married in 1958 and moved in 1959 to the Philadelphia Main Line.
Martha and Arky moved to Princeton in 1965 where they raised their three daughters, Barbara, Susan and Phoebe. Martha immersed herself in the community, volunteering with many local and regional organizations including McCarter Theater, The Friends of the Princeton University Art Museum, Arts Council of Princeton, Princeton Symphony Orchestra, Princeton Hospital, NJ Neuropsychiatric Institute, Planned Parenthood, and others. She served for many years on the boards of Princeton Symphony Orchestra, The Friends of the Princeton University Art Museum and McCarter Theater.
Indefatigable, Martha had a zest for life and seized every opportunity to spend time with her family and large circle of friends. She loved to entertain and to travel. Martha planned and took trips to exotic destinations across Europe, Africa, Asia and the Pacific, as well as Bermuda, where the Vaughn’s bought a home in 1978.
Travel sparked Martha’s creativity, and in her mid-life she embarked on a career as a fine art photographer, which gave her much joy and fulfillment. She had a keen eye for color, light, and abstraction and found inspiration on her many trips overseas. Her work was exhibited in venues in New Jersey, New York, and Bermuda. She published a book of her photographs, Of Time and Place, in 2013.
Martha is survived by her husband, George, and three daughters, Barbara Vaughn Hoimes of San Francisco and New York City, Susan Vaughn (O’Brien) of Los Angeles, and Phoebe Outerbridge of Pennington, NJ and their husbands; six grandchildren: Alexander Hoimes, Bailey and Whitney Outerbridge, and Owen, Lucie, and Finn O’Brien; a sister, Virginia Hinman Cummings along with her husband Dr. Harland Cummings, and brother, Harvey Hinman along with his wife Peggy Hinman; and many nieces and nephews. She is predeceased by her sister Constance Getz.
A private family service took place at her home; a virtual remembrance for friends and family will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers the family requests that any gifts in Martha’s honor be made to HomeFront and Planned Parenthood of Central and Greater Northern NJ.