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Ann Seeley Lee Woodard died peacefully on May 21, 2020 in Carthage, North Carolina. She was born April 5, 1937 in Troy, NC to Harvey Glenn Lee Sr. and Ann Miller Seeley Lee. She is survived by daughter Seeley LeeAnn Woodard Finicum (Scott) of Whispering Pines, son Will W. Woodard III (Suzy) of Southern Shores, and grandchildren William Lionel (Leo) Woodard, Isaac Walton Finicum and Emmanuel Abrahan Finicum. She was preceded in death by her brother, Harvey Glenn Lee Jr. of Kitty Hawk, and her husband of forty years, Will W. Woodard Jr. of Wilson.

Ann began playing piano at the age of five and studied under teachers Pru Waldron in Hartsville, SC and Jan Shinon, Edith Potter and Wilton Mason at the UNC-Chapel Hill School of Music during her teenage years. She performed Rachmaninoff’s Second Piano Concerto with the North Carolina Symphony as a high school junior.

Ann was a 1955 graduate of Sanford Central High School where she was voted “Most Talented” by her Senior classmates. Ann attended Randolph-Macon (VA) Women’s College and was a 1959 graduate of Oberlin (OH) Conservatory majoring in piano performance under the tutelage of dean Freeman Koberstein.

Ann met her future husband Will at the Old Cavalier Beach Club in Virginia Beach, Va. on Labor Day Weekend 1959. Ann and Will were married in Bruton Parish Church in Williamsburg, Va. in March of 1960 and made their home in Wilson, NC. Ann was a piano teacher and dedicated wife and mother. She was a member of First United Methodist Church in Wilson where she sang in the choir. Ann was active in regional performing arts events and was an avid bridge and gin rummy player.

A private family funeral will be held. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Wilson Arts Council, 108 Nash Street Wilson, NC 27893 or First United Methodist Church Music Ministry, PO Box 1423 Wilson, NC 27894. Joyner’s Funeral Home of Wilson is assisting the family. Condolences and remembrances may be made online at joyners.net.

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