Richard H. Long
The family, friends and community of Richard H. Long have lost a great man. Born in Lincoln, Nebraska in 1934, Richard was a hard worker from an early age, and even as a small child he worked long hours at his family’s dry-cleaning business. One of his jobs for many years was to clean out the industrial sized dryers where he would find many interesting trinkets that had fallen out of customer’s pockets. This was the beginning of a lifelong hobby of collecting things, including one of his first collections: miniature pocket-knives, some of them not even a half inch long.
From an early age, Richard had big plans for himself. If you spent much time with him, it was likely you had a conversation about the importance of a college education, something he was quite passionate about as a necessity to get ahead in life and be successful. So, he saved and saved his dry-cleaning money to eventually send himself to Nebraska University where he developed another passion: football, specifically the Nebraska Cornhuskers and he remained a steadfast, loyal fan his entire life.
Once Richard graduated college, he got a job as a recruiter at IBM in Chicago and he always liked to tell the story about how he kept a small sign on his desk that said, “Think”. Job candidates were given written tests, but it was Richard’s interviews, evaluating the candidates’ abilities to “think” that were the ultimate test. He liked to grill them regarding their accomplishments, activities, and of course their education.
Richard analyzed everything in order to make the best decisions in life, some of the most important to him were choosing a spouse, an education, a job, buying a house, or other investments. So, you know he was serious and ready when he met Marcia Sims, a beautiful airline stewardess from Visalia CA, stationed in Chicago, sharing a small apartment with some other stewardesses. They married and had their first daughter, Kelly. The new family then started what was then called their IBM migration (I.B.M. for I’ve Been Moved) and moved to Minneapolis, then eventually to Los Angeles where daughter number two, Susan, was born. Well, it turned out Richard already had his eye on his next opportunity as a stock broker and financial advisor at Paine Weber in Santa Barbara where he became one of the first advisors in that office.
After moving to Santa Barbara, two more children, Mike and Beth completed the family, and the years that followed were successful. Paine Weber went on to become UBS where Richard worked full time until retiring at the age of 83! And if this wasn’t impressive enough, he also had a second job as a highly respected partner in a financial advisement firm. When Richard wasn’t working obsessively, he enjoyed his family and adding to his many collections and antiques. He curated an amusing collection of antique beer steins over the years. And if you have ever been to his home, it would have been hard to miss his collection of antique film processing equipment that he used as picture frames to feature his thousands of photos of his family. He loved capturing every moment on film. In fact, he may have driven his family a little crazy with it, but the legacy he leaves behind with the photos and endless videos is cherished beyond description.
He was opinionated and passionate about many things, but mostly family, fishing, playing tennis at La Cumbre Country Club, lunching with friends, Nebraska football and the stock market! His passion and his very strong will made him a fighter and there were many times everyone thought he would beat Covid. But on December 28, 2020, he lost the battle. Richard was also a deeply religious man, having served as a chaplain in the Navy, and his family is comforted that this allowed him to find peace in his final days and moments. And the people that knew him best know he’s up there now, fishing, hanging out with his dog Cassie and watching all of us, trying to keep us on his path, thinking and making good decisions.
In addition to Marcia, Kelly, Susan, Mike and Beth, Richard is also survived by Kelly’s son, Trevor, Susan’s daughter Addison, Mike’s wife Liz, and their children Sydney and Channing.
One of the most defining characteristics of Richard was his desire to advise…whether you were a client, family member or friend…and his many lessons will live on! So, in honor of Richard, be smart about money, work hard, chase your dreams, make memories, take lots of pictures, go to college, take some time off to fish, and love your family while you can.