Dr. Hosea DeWood (Woody) Lambeth, Jr.

Dr. Hosea DeWood (Woody) Lambeth, Jr. passed away on Saturday, November 9, at the age of 95. Woody was born in Elon, NC, on December 22, 1923, the son of H.D. Lambeth, Sr., and Minnie Ida Trollinger Lambeth. He earned Bachelor’s and Master's degrees in Psychology and a Ph.D. in Special Education from the University of North Carolina.

In 1945, Woody enlisted in the Army and became an aerial navigator, flying more than 35 combat missions in the China Burma India Theatre. After returning, he worked as the Technical Director of the Lost Colony outdoor drama in Manteo. Woody built and operated a Western Auto store in Pittsboro, where he met his future wife, Virginia Neighbors. He held positions as principal of the Whitsett High School, guidance counselor at Alexander Wilson School in Graham, school counselor at Broad Street Junior High School in Burlington, and Director of Guidance and Special Education for Craven County in New Bern. After a yearlong contract teaching at North Carolina State University, he moved to Greenville, NC, in 1968, where he joined the faculty of East Carolina University as a guidance counselor in the ECU Counseling Center.

While living in Greenville, Woody and his family were active members of Immanuel Baptist Church, where Woody sang in the choir, taught Sunday School, prepared church fellowship dinners, and sang “Oh Holy Night” as a soloist every Christmas. Upon his retirement in 1983, Woody returned to Burlington and served as a volunteer at Twin Lakes Retirement Center for nearly a decade. He became a member of Grove Park Baptist Church, where he taught Sunday School and orchestrated fellowship events.

Woody Lambeth was a true Renaissance man. He bought and sold land, built houses, took his family on elaborate vacations, and established memorial scholarships at two universities. He raised five children on his own as a widower and taught them the importance of putting God and family first. He was a past master of the Tabasco Masonic Lodge in Gibsonville. He wrote stories and songs and was a published poet, and when he passed away, he was finalizing a book of spiritual philosophies he had developed throughout decades of life’s adventures.

Woody was preceded in death by his wife, Virginia Elizabeth Neighbors Lambeth, and daughter, Jennifer Elizabeth Lambeth. He is survived by son, Dr. John D. Lambeth, wife Menda, and grandson Nathaniel, of Athens, GA; daughter Deborah Lambeth of Burlington; daughter Linda Orlando and husband Gary, of Garner, NC; and son Stephen Lambeth and husband Matthew Vecera, of Cliffside Park, NJ. Funeral services will be held at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, November 16, at Grove Park Baptist Church in Burlington. Masonic graveside services will be held at 3:00 p.m. at Magnolia Cemetery in Elon. In lieu of flowers, the family would appreciate donations to the Jennifer Elizabeth Lambeth Scholarship at ECU.

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