Beloved Dunedin teacher dies days after severe fall

DUNEDIN, Fla. - Students and staff at Dunedin High School are mourning the loss of a beloved teacher.

Beloved father, husband, and educator, Ryan Vaught, 40, died the day after Christmas from a traumatic brain injury.

He was a U.S. Marine veteran who served in the Iraq war and taught special needs kids and PE at Dunedin High School. He was also track and strength-training coach.

Now, the community is mourning his loss.

Ryan Vaught with his wife and two children. 

His family says he got out of bed in the middle of the night on December 21 and fell when he was in the bathroom. His symptoms were severe and his wife took him to the hospital.

READ: $10,000 worth of equipment donated to Dunedin High's electrical program

"They took cat scans and realized that he had the occipital fracture and a brain bleed, and then he had blood dripping from his ear, so he lost hearing in his right ear," said Teresa Vaught, Ryan’s wife.

Ryan and Teresa Vaught on their wedding day. 

He spent several nights in the hospital, including one night in the ICU. He was released, but after some time at home, the symptoms worsened again.

Teresa Vaught says he went back to the hospital and was in a coma on Christmas day. Ryan died the next day.

READ: Hillsborough County teacher goes viral in epic dance-off with student

A memorial was made in Ryan’s honor at Dunedin High School. Signs and posters line the fence on campus honoring his life and legacy.

A memorial dedicated to Ryan Vaught continues to grow at the high school. 

"He loved working with those kids. They respected him. His students, he connected with his kids on such a different level and teachers used to tell him often, I don’t understand why these kids talk to you like a normal person and listen to you because they don’t listen to anybody else," Teresa Vaught said.

READ: Hillsborough County parents start petitions against proposed new school boundaries
              
When he wasn’t in the gym or on a school campus, he would go into total dad or uncle mode.

Ryan Vaught and his two children. 

"He was a big family man too. He loved. I have a ton of nieces and nephews in my family and he was always the one every time they saw him, ‘Ryan we want to go outside,’ he just immediately, no question about it always willing to take them to the park, he was always outside with them. He just wanted everyone to play and keep moving and be outside," said Teresa.

Ryan and his wife got married four years ago and they have two kids: a three-year-old daughter and an eight-month-old son.