Dusk over the Yoakum pasture — a tent, a crowd, and a stage

Why we exist

The Story.

A plane crash. A hospital bed. A ministry forged from forced stillness — and the conviction that the people who give their lives to the gospel need somewhere to be still too.

Read the story What we do

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January 17, 2023

The crash.

A small plane went down in a pasture outside Yoakum, Texas. Four godly men — Steve Tucker, Bill Garner, Tyler Patterson, and Tyler Springer — were lost. A fifth, Dr. Kennon Vaughan, should not have lived. The impact was ninety Gs. The probability of survival, zero.

In the wreckage Kennon came back to himself, found a phone, and called 911. "There was no panic," he would later say. "There was a real peace." A tragedy no one should survive. The beginning of something no one planned.

Founder & President

Dr. Kennon Vaughan

Lead Pastor, Harvest Memphis · Founder, Downline Ministries

The Hospital Bed

A forced stillness.

Before the crash, Kennon was — in his own words — running and gunning. Good things, hard things, godly things; excessive kids' sports, hobbies, meetings, travel. A busy life filled with busy ministry. By most measures, fruitful. By the measure that counts, close to burnout.

God stopped him. Hard.

Months in a hospital bed in Texas. Nearly a year of rehab before he was back on a stage. Unable to do. Only to rest, to heal, to pray — and, slowly, to reckon with how his family was running. What to put back in. What not to let back in. Priorities. Relationships. The kind of pastor and husband and father he wanted to be.

A pastor can't burn out. But the people who pour out for others are the ones most tempted to believe that rest is neglect.

God forced him to a hospital bed, because He loved him enough to stop him. That conviction became the soil of this ministry.

What We Do

Minister to ministers.
Tell the bigger story.

Redemption Ranch Ministries exists so that those who carry the gospel for others have a place to set it down and be carried for a while — and so that the story of God's mercy keeps being told outside the walls of any one church.

01

Minister to ministers

A place to unplug, be still, and be poured back into.

On a quiet Texas ranch, we host pastors, missionaries, and ministry teams with meals, lodging, and the kind of slowness their lives rarely allow. Alongside rest, each retreat makes room for teaching, discipleship training, and pastoral counsel — tailored to the guest and shaped by scripture. Day retreats are happening now; overnight stays open as the ranch house comes online, with bunkhouses and cabins to follow.

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02

Public outreach

Kennon's story. The bigger story.

Through gatherings, rodeo partnerships, and ranch-based outreach, we share the testimony of how God spared a man's life — and, far more miraculously, how Christ has purchased the lives of all who trust in Him.

Where we're going

Where We're Going

The story, still unfolding.

01 On the pasture

A second gathering — hopefully early 2027.

We're prayerfully planning the next on-site Redemption Story gathering on the field where the first one was held.

About the event

02 At the arena

Partnering at rodeos across Texas.

Bringing the gospel to cowboys, families, and communities that gather at local rodeos.

03 The dream

One day, a Redemption Rodeo.

A full rodeo of our own — events, music, and the message of Christ for the communities we love. Not yet, but we believe.

Walk with us

This story isn't ours to keep.

If the Lord has stirred something in you, rest with us, pray for the next gathering, or give to the work as He leads.

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