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Naomi Gurganus Alligood of Bath, N.C. — a woman of faith who served her church, her community and was one of its ambassadors to the world — died Monday Feb. 28, 2022 at Vidant Medical Center in Greenville following a brief illness.  She was 88 years old.

A service celebrating her life will be conducted at 2 p.m. on Sunday March 6 at Woodard’s Pond Church of Christ, 9004 US 264, Washington, N.C.  A private interment will be held at a later date.

She was born Aug. 29, 1933 in Aurora, NC, the daughter of Louis Edward Gurganus and Media Modlin Gurganus.

While a student at Bath High School she was recruited to work for the Federal Bureau of Investigation and following graduation in 1951 she moved to Washington D.C.

On Oct.16, 1952 she married Robert “Bob” Alligood, a high school classmate.  They lived in Washington, D.C. until 1963 and Manassas, Va., to 1974 when they left the hubbub of the nation’s capital to return with their three children back to Bath.

In both Manassas and in Bath she served the local schools as a substitute teacher.  She also served in the ombudsman program at a local nursing home.

Her life was an expression of her deep faith and devotion to her Lord Jesus Christ.  Naomi was a member of Woodard’s Pond Church of Christ and served on the Bereavement Committee.  It was a natural extension of her advocacy for those who otherwise might be unnoticed but deserved to be embraced.  Preparing and serving meals was one of her greatest joys.  Among her family and throughout the community, she is remembered as an extraordinary cook.

For several years she was active in Friendship Force International, a global organization that promoted understanding, cultural education and citizenship diplomacy through homestay exchanges and person-to-person friendships.  She served as a personal diplomat, representing Bath, Beaufort County, North Carolina and the United States on exchange visits to Germany, England and other European nations.

She is preceded in death by her husband and her son Gregg.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in her memory to Woodard’s Pond Church of Christ, 9004 U.S. 264, Washington, N.C. 27889, and directed to support of the kitchen facilities of the Bereavement Committee.

She is survived by: her daughter Karen A. Thomas, MD, and husband Bill of Washington, NC; daughter, Toni A. Jennings and husband Carlisle of Hampstead, NC; granddaughter, Katherine G. Thomas of Libby, MT; daughter-in-law, Pat H. Alligood of Norristown, PA; brother Kent Gurganus of Bath, NC; sisters Eleanor Gurganus Humphrey and Betty Gurganus Elliott of Bath, NC; sister-in-law Virginia Gurganus of Virginia Beach, VA.

Condolences may be sent to the family online at www.paulfuneralhome.com

Paul Funeral Home & Crematory of Washington is honored to serve the Alligood family.