Dr. Clifford Long

Glendive, Montana: Dr. Clifford James Long, age 65, of Glendive, Montana, passed away on Tuesday, November 27, 2012 at St Alexius Hospital in Bismarck, North Dakota. He was doing what he loved, cycling with the wind, when he suffered a tragically unexpected heart attack. A Celebration of Dr. Clifford Long's life will be held at 10:00 A.M. on Saturday, December 15, 2012 at the Dawson County High School Auditorium in Glendive with Celebrant Sandy Silha officiating. Silvernale-Silha Funeral Home of Glendive has been entrusted with the arrangements. Clifford was born on July 9, 1947 in Billericay, England, the son of Raymond Cyril and Lucy (Gates) Long. He was raised and educated in England. Following high school he went to work for General Motors as a draftsmen and ultimately moved to America at the age of twenty-one to continue working in automotive design. Shortly after his move to America he was inspired to pursue a career in medicine. He completed his bachelor’s degree with honors in two years at the University of Michigan then his medical degree at Wayne State University of Medicine in Detroit, Michigan. Residency training in OB/GYN was completed in 1981 at Saginaw Cooperative Hospitals/Michigan State University in Saginaw, Michigan. He was very proud to become a United States Citizen on July 4th, 1976, the nation’s bicentennial. Cliff then moved to Southern Pines, North Carolina where he served the community from 1981-2003. Not only was he a staff OB/GYN at the Pinehurst Surgical Clinic ushering children into the world and helping scores of women, he was very active in numerous administrative positions during his time there. He served as Chairman of the OB/GYN Clinic, Vice President of Moore Regional Medical Staff, President of Pinehurst Surgical Clinic, Chair of the patient care committee and ethics committee and Board of Directors of Sandhills Children’s Center just to name a few. His countless other affiliations were instrumental in establishing Moore Regional Hospital and Pinehurst Surgical Clinic. He was also an active member of the American College of Surgeons, American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology, American Urogynecologic Society, and American Fertility Society. Clifford was instrumental in designing and bringing to life the first Birthing Room in a community hospital in the state of North Carolina. It was in Southern Pines that Clifford met Dr. Jeanne Stewart. They later married on December 23, 2003. After leaving North Carolina, Clifford joined Jeanne at Yokota Air Base in Tokyo, Japan for a year and a half. During that time he served as a Red Cross Volunteer mentor and instructor in the United States Air Force. They subsequently moved to Glendive where they made their home and developed Women's Health Care at Glendive Medical Center for eight years. While living in Glendive, Cliff used his spare time focusing his energy on family and pursuing his interests. Cliff and Jeanne designed and built their own Japanese style home. When Cliff wasn't traveling to visit family he spent his time with Jeanne on their land overlooking the Yellowstone River. They had recently taken on a new position at St Joseph's Hospital in Dickinson, North Dakota, three months prior to his passing. Cliff's hobbies included cycling, art/design, poetry, building/construction and being in the outdoors. He was well respected for his wisdom and multitude of talents. He was greatly adored by every life he touched for his compassion, wit and sense of humor. He will be grievously missed by the family he leaves behind. Survivors include his wife Dr. Jeanne Stewart of Glendive; children, Jennifer Long Little (husband, Andy) of Davidson, North Carolina, Meghan Long Shearer (husband, Andrew) of Glendale, California, Jarrod Long of Mt Pleasant, South Carolina, Justin Way (wife, Laura) of Phoenix, Arizona, Matthew Way of Miami, Florida, Evan Long of Billings, Montana, and Cori and Jake Holland of Glendive; grandchildren, Ethan and Drew Little and Tatum and Hazel Shearer; parents, Raymond and Lucy Long of Little Comberton, England; sister, Patricia Nunn of Lutterworth, England and several nieces and nephews. The family invites friends and family to share their stories about Clifford by emailing Sandy Silha at sanlan@live.com. These will be passed on to the family. Also, anyone that would like to have attended the service but was unable, please visit our website at www.silvernale-silhafuneralhome.com to read his eulogy. Remembrances and condolences may be forwarded to the above website or mailed to the address below. Silvernale-Silha Funeral Home P.O. Box 848 Glendive, Montana 59330 Eulogy: Looking out over the Yellowstone River and sharing a beautiful sunset with your soulmate. The wind in your face as you bike down a scenic road with friends. The thrill and wonder of being the first to place human hands on a new life. The satisfaction of a tool in your gifted hands, be it one for surgery, one to write poetry or design a dream home, or one to construct or instruct with. A favorite chair, a good scotch and the sound of laughter and conversation with family and friends. These were only a few of Cliff’s favorite times that graced his life. Cliff learned to live and appreciate life fully, and his capacity to share that with the people in his life was limitless. Cliff was born and raised in England. His mother, Lucy, when describing Cliff as a child used only one word, a wanderer. Lucy says she was always looking for him; it began when he was three. Someone always brought him back and when he was older, he would find his own way home. It did not surprise her when her son left England for America, and she knew he would remain there. But as Cliff’s friend, Gerry Reichert said, “you can take the man out of England, but you can’t take the Brit out of the man.” Cliff could have been anything he wanted to be, but after trying automotive design, he chose medicine. Cliff was passionate about being a doctor. Kim Kazlarian, a friend and colleague, and the urn bearer today, met Cliff in medical school in Michigan. He recalls the two of them studying in the library and eating in the hospital. Kim says after tests, he and Cliff didn’t go out and drink like the other med students, they celebrated by going out and eating, steaks. Kim recalls that even then everyone liked Cliff. They found him warm and welcoming and a great practical joker. Cliff was a good communicator and a man of his word. And, says Kim, Cliff’s British accent didn’t hurt either, as it made him more interesting and memorable to us Americans. Cliff worked one year as a family doctor, and then specialized as an OB/GYN. Cliff preferred women as patients. He loved delivering babies and he loved surgery. He was a very gifted surgeon. If you were his patient in surgery, you were safe, with no need to worry. His abilities, his confidence, and his knowledge were amazing even to his colleagues. Cliff treated his patients like family. Cliff was very intelligent, sensitive to the needs of people, and had a great compassion for everyone. He cared about his patients; he cared about people. Another colleague, Dr. Randy Wobser, met Cliff in Japan when Jeanne and Randy both were doctors for the Air Force. Randy termed Jeanne, the journeyman, and Cliff, the master. Randy was struggling with being a surgeon, including panic attacks and thoughts of quitting. Cliff mentored Randy, helping teach Randy the “art” of surgery. After the Air Force, Randy went on to work in a teaching hospital, and credits Cliff with saving his career. They remained friends. Cliff always stayed a true friend. The people who worked beside Cliff and Jeanne in the office loved them both. To their staff, the office was not just the doctors’ practice, it was “our practice.” Dr. Long and Dr. Stewart, Hailee, Meg, and Hannah just gelled and had a very special working relationship. Cliff and Jeanne’s love and respect for each other was always apparent to the staff. The office atmosphere was calm, dedicated, caring, and humor was always present. Cliff’s nurse, Meg, remembers her first day on the job. Dr. Long was showing her around the office. She was a bit intimidated not yet knowing the nature of Dr. Long. As they headed for his office, Dr. Long said he wanted Meg to meet a former nurse of his who had messed up and no longer worked there. Meg was naturally apprehensive, and it took a moment for the humor to sink in when Dr. Long introduced her to Rose, a replica of a full skeleton that he had hanging in his office. Hannah remembers a substitute receptionist working in the office and naturally babies were a topic of conversation. The receptionist commented to Dr. Long how she wanted a baby. As he walked away he replied, that he was sorry but he had been fixed. His humor and wit will be greatly missed. If being a doctor was his passion, being a husband, father, grandfather, and a friend was his essence. Deeply spiritual, he loved and enjoyed those he held close to his heart. He let nature sooth his soul and loved his ranch on the Yellowstone River for the beauty he could see in every direction, and he shared this richness with his family and friends. It has been in the last ten years that the work schedule has slowed and the appreciation for life itself has played a more important role. It all came with discovering his soulmate, Jeanne. When Jeanne moved to North Carolina she needed a doctor. Jeanne went downtown and planted herself in the local coffee shop and asked every woman who came in who their doctor was. Almost everyone replied Dr. Clifford Long. Dr. Long delivered both Jeanne’s children. When Jeanne was in medical school, she did a month’s rotation with Dr. Long, and learned more from him about the art and humanity of medicine than in all her education thus far. When they reconnected later, she was divorced, and Cliff was separated, and common interests led to the greatest love they would ever know. Jeanne loved the twinkle in his eyes; she loved that he was ridiculously romantic, she knew that beneath the exterior that people found intimidating, which by the way, Cliff just didn’t understand, was a soft cuddly teddy bear. Her admiration and respect for him as a doctor was unending; he was her greatest mentor and teacher. As her work partner, Cliff was fun and they made a great team. At the end of the day all issues were resolved and everything was okay. To relax, Jeanne would meditate; if Cliff sat still for too long, he fell asleep. Jeanne had a ledge overlooking the river where she would sit and meditate; Cliff, with his fear of heights, would sit on a hill above her and back from where he could see over the edge. Jeanne was into nutritious eating; Cliff had a pronounced sweet tooth. For Jeanne, Cliff was perfect with only one small imperfection, like Hansel, he left a trail of breadcrumbs wherever he went. At the time they truly discovered each other, Jeanne had a commitment to the Air Force and three years in Japan. Cliff followed her there and became Mr. Mom for a year and a half. They were married and next week they would have celebrated their ninth anniversary. During he last year and a half of Jeanne’s time in Japan, Cliff had found Montana, and he and Cori and Jake moved to Glendive, with plans for Jeanne to follow. Cliff loved the freedom he felt in Montana, and fell in love with the people and the landscape. When Jeanne arrived and joined Cliff in practice, they bought their ranch and began planning their dream home, a Japanese style home. With Cliff’s talent for beauty in design, and his knowledge of construction, they built their home just as they envisioned it would be. Friends would come willingly to help when called upon and many great memories were made. The ranch and home became he and Jeanne’s heaven on earth. Instrumental to this heaven were relationships with family and friends. Cliff’s children from his first marriage, Jennifer, Meghan, and Jarrod have memories from childhood of only seeing their father every third week-end due to divorce. These week-ends were very important and it was hard when they ended. Jen remembers Cliff taking them on big memorable vacations, skiing, to Disney World, and to New York City. Meghan recalls that Thanksgiving was their holiday to spend together, which would include Dad and kids walking to Waymoth Woods, hiking, building a fire, watching the Lions football game, followed by dinner. Meghan talks of Cliff’s love of cars and driving. When traveling with her dad, she remembers the trivia quizzes and how there seemed no limit on her dad’s knowledge. He loved history, especially British history, and wanted them to know it too. She tells that as a youth, Cliff spent three weeks in a survival course and it changed his life. He gave each of his three children the privilege of completing the same course. Meghan’s gifts from her dad include his sweet tooth, his ability with words and poetry, his wit, his talented hands, his spirituality and love of others. Jen on the other hand, followed her father’s footsteps in medicine. She witnessed her first delivery at age 16 and it fueled her desire to become an OB/GYN. She viewed her father as soulful and caring, sensitive, determined and with a great work ethic, traits she now sees in herself. Jen says her dad was a great listener, a sounding board, and a wise counselor. Both Jen and Meghan lived with their dad during high school. And both agree that their emotional ties to their dad has been stronger these past ten years, and they credit Jeanne for showing Cliff how to strengthen the emotional ties with the important people in his life. Cori, Jeanne’s daughter, noticed that most step-kids are treated as their parent’s child, but Cliff treated step-kids as his own. She respected him as a father and as a man. As a person, Cori liked his intelligence and as a father, she liked the amount of love and life he emitted and shared with everyone. She also liked when Cliff was Mr. Mom and on the way to school she ate Butterfingers, and Jake ate Kitkats and they drank hot chocolate, and after school they would stop at Albertson’s and buy Hershey candy bars and bread and have Hershey sandwiches. Every morning when Jeanne was still in Japan, Cliff had Cori and Jake call their mother for a visit. Cori also noticed that Cliff had the spirit of a child; he loved games and having fun, and she liked his awful British sense of humor. A gift he left with Cori was a love of knowledge. With Jake, Cliff left his sweet tooth. As a grandfather, Jen noticed her father was more playful. He would play Star Wars with her twin boys, Ethan and Drew, and fake injuries and death. Their name for Cliff was “Pop-pop”. After Cliff died, Ethan and Drew told their mother that “Pop-pop” was still alive in their hearts. Friends. With his intelligence and interest in everything, Cliff’s friends covered a broad spectrum. Some were doctors, where professional mutual respect grew into friendship. Others were people who maybe shared a common interest such as biking, horses, construction, or long conversations over scotch. Cliff was an interesting man who was interested in people; making and having friends was not difficult. They worked on each others’ projects together, supported each other at work, supported each other in life. Cliff had a special sensitivity and could bond with men in a way men should connect. And of course the women loved him. His humor, his wit, his interest in them as a person, his respect for them. Cliff was a very private man, but he had a way of sharing his view of the world that made people feel like they was an important part of his world. A friend of Cliff’s quoted Abe Lincoln when talking about Cliff, “It’s not the years in your life, but the life in your years.” There was much life in Cliff’s 65 years. Much will be missed about Cliff Long, but there is even more to be remembered. And remembered he shall be. “To live in hearts that love, is not to die.”

Dr. Clifford Long

July 9, 1947 - December 15, 2012

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Dr. Clifford Long

July 9, 1947 - December 15, 2012

What We Do

Flowers & Gifts

Plan Ahead

About Us

Resources

Obituaries

Grief & Healing

Contact Information

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