Sharing Joy

By Julie Duffin
November 2025 View more Books

Losing a loved one is a universally human experience, but the grief that follows is a uniquely personal one.

When J9 Vaughn’s sister died in 2018, Vaughn turned to therapy and journaling to process the unexpected loss. “I’ve always journaled. My family moved around a lot, and I’ve kept notes on our lives,” the Broadview librarian explains. “I always intended to write a fiction book, but after Joy’s last accident, I wanted people to know her story.”

Her sister, Joy Vaughn, was a Spanish teacher at Batavia High School. In 1995, while chaperoning students in Costa Rica, she suffered a traumatic brain injury in a whitewater rafting accident. At the age of 24, she moved back to her family’s Naperville home, requiring lifelong care. Decades later, after moving with family to Alabama, a drunk driver crashed into Joy’s bedroom, killing her in her sleep.

“I knew it couldn’t be fiction because no one would believe such tragedy could happen to one person,” Vaughn explains. “But it really happened. And Joy was so much more than what happened to her.”

Vaughn poignantly published the memoir on Joy’s birthday (Nov. 3) as a tribute to a life not defined by tragedy but by love and resilience.

Photos: J9 Vaughn