After a long, fulfilling life, Samuel Brightwell Ligon died on August 1, 2022 at the Carolina Meadows Continuing Care Retirement Community in Chapel Hill, NC. Sam was the son of Willard and Mary (Brightwell) Ligon and was born in Pittsburgh, PA. His father’s management role in the Westinghouse Electric Corporation led to transfers to Buffalo, NY; Palo Alto, CA; and Vicksburg, MS. Sam attributed his ease of adjusting to new situations to the transitions experienced in childhood.

Sam was a proud member of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) and attained the Eagle Scout rank in Palo Alto. He wholeheartedly agreed with Robert Gates, the 22nd Secretary of the Defense, intelligence analyst, and university president who said his best leadership training came from being a Boy Scout.

Sam graduated from Vicksburg High School and attended Auburn University on a 4-year Navy Scholarship. There he majored in Mechanical Engineering and graduated with a Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering in 1961. Upon graduation he was commissioned an Ensign in the Navy’s Civil Engineering Corps and married his high school sweetheart Linda Teller of Vicksburg, MS. They moved to Gulfport, MS, Sam’s first duty station. His second duty station was Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.
Upon completion of his 4 years in the US Navy, Sam and his family moved to Boston, MA, where he obtained an MBA from the Harvard Business School. The family then moved to Dallas, Texas where he eventually started his first business which became a lifelong entrepreneurial passion spanning 40 years.

Sam is survived by his beloved children, Landy Ligon and wife Robin; David Ligon and wife Suzanne; and Lori DiLiegro and husband Paul; his brother and toymaker Jerry Ligon and wife Fay; his treasured grandchildren Kate, Maggie, Nate, James, Sam, Meg, Emily and Gabs; his first wife Linda Teller, and a later wife, Patricia Yeary; and numerous nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends.

Throughout his life Sam was regarded as a natural leader; athlete; and as a man blessed with a fine mind, great creativity, wonderful humor, compassion, generosity, and humility. He was innately trustworthy and embodied integrity and an inner sense of purpose in contributing to the common good.

In 2014, Sam moved from Texas to the Carolina Meadows Continuing Care Retirement Community in Chapel Hill NC. With his deep desire to make a positive difference, Sam immersed himself immediately in the life of the community and worked tirelessly in campus beautification, welcoming new residents and strengthening opportunities for their participation, and listening to and responding joyfully to residents’ questions and concerns. He
served on many committees, chaired the Residents’ Budget and Finance Committee, and served as Vice-President and President of the Residents Association. Visible evidence of his tireless work on behalf of Carolina Meadows can be seen in the Carolina Meadows Park, Labyrinth, Memorial Grove, and other projects and endeavors. At the dedication of the Memorial Garden on July 14, 2022, it was announced that the road leading to the Park, the Labyrinth, and the Memorial Grove would be renamed “Ligon Way”.

Plans are underway for a Memorial Service by Zoom in the near future. In lieu of flowers, Sam asked that memorial contributions be made to the Carolina Meadows Foundation for Employee Education either online or mail.

https://www.carolinameadowsfoundation.org/ Donate>Employee Fund>Employee Education, Note: Sam Ligon OR 100 Carolina Meadows, Chapel Hill, NC 27517.