Aurrey Louies ELLIOTT

19 MAR 1921 - 26 NOV 2012

• BIRTH: 19 MAR 1921, Norfolk, Norfolk, Virginia
• DEATH: 26 NOV 2012, South Bend, St Joseph, IN

INDEX

[N29679] Audrey Louise Elliott
Mar. 19, 1921 - Nov. 26, 2012

SOUTH BEND - Audrey Elliott Vagner, 91, of South Bend died in the early morning hours of Monday, November 26, 2012 in her home following an illness. Mrs. Vagner was born on March 19, 1921 in Norfolk, VA, the younger of two children of the late Louise (Jackson) and George Elliott, Jr., and sister of the late Allan George Elliott. On June 9, 1943 in Nashville, TN she married S. Bernard Vagner, M.D., who survives. Also surviving are three daughters, Karen V. Thompson (wife of George R. Thompson, III) of Glendale, WI, Paula M. Vagner of Boca Raton, FL, and Lisa M. Vagner of Lehigh Acres, FL; one son, Allan B. Vagner (husband of Angela C. Vagner) of Chicago, IL; two grandsons, George Robert Thompson IV of Costa Mesa, CA and Christopher Aaron Thompson of Milwaukee, WI; and one great-granddaughter, Ginger Soso Thompson of Minneapolis, MN. A gifted student, Mrs. Vagner achieved her secondary education at Saint Francis de Sales School in Rock Castle, Virginia, graduating as Valedictorian. She was a double-major 1942 graduate of Xavier University in New Orleans, where she became a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority and Kappa Gamma Pi, the National Catholic College Graduate Honor Society. Settling in South Bend in January of 1949, she was active in her community through a number of civic groups and faith-based organizations, including the NAACP, the Urban League (where she served as a board member), the Christ Child Society, the Blessed Martin De Porres Society, Catholic Social Services, and was a devoted member of Christ the King Catholic Church for over 56 years. Additionally, Mrs. Vagner was an active and integral participant in the Fair Housing Commission hearings in the 1960's, publicly testifying on the discriminatory housing practices in St. Joseph County in the pre-civil rights era. The Vagner family will receive friends from 2 to 4 p.m. on Sunday, December 9th in the Welsheimer Family Funeral Home North, 17033 Cleveland Road in South Bend. A Vigil Service will follow at 4:00 p.m. in the funeral home. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Center for Hospice Care, 111 Sunnybrook Court, South Bend, IN 46637. Family and friends may leave e-mail condolences at www.welsheimer.com.
Published by South Bend Tribune on Nov. 30, 2012.