Chilkat Valley News - Serving Haines and Klukwan, Alaska since 1966

On Sunday friends and family of Pam Long, 59, filled the Haines Christian Center to celebrate her life. Long died at home in Cordova on Feb. 18 after years of living with breast cancer that was first diagnosed in 1995.  "Every breath she took, every conversation she had, God was part of it," brother Jack Jackson said.

  Long was a devout Christian who didn't attend any particular church. "Pam would say that 'God is not religious'," and she was "extremely humble and non-judgmental," friend Bittan Gray said. When visitors came to comfort her, she'd end up comforting them. "Pam was so full of life, so easygoing and kind, that they'd walk away re-evaluating their own lives," Gray said.

Pamela Hillary Long was born in Juneau on Sept. 19, 1959, the oldest of Coastal Ellis Airways mechanic and pilot Tom Jackson and Olive (Hillary) Jackson's three children. The Jacksons moved to Haines in 1966, where her parents owned and operated several businesses including Jackson's Variety Store, Harbor Hardware, and a marine and small engine shop.

At Haines High, Long played flute, ran hurdles for the track team, and excelled in art. After graduating in 1977 she briefly attended interior design school in Texas, before returning home to work in the family business. She also won a contest for a new mural in the Haines municipal building. Her painting of Paradise Cove graces the stairwell in the assembly chambers. "Pam always wished she could go back and add more realistic details, because she had a tight deadline," sister Rebecca Long said.

  Pam and Terry Long were married in Haines on July 25, 1980.  They had three sons, Dayton, Jeremiah, and Gavin, whom Pam homeschooled. They built a house on the site of her childhood home overlooking Pyramid Island which she helped design. "She had a flair for decorating," her sister said. Long also gardened, studied the Bible, and enjoyed visiting with friends. "She had friends everywhere," Rebecca said.  

  "The first time I met Pam she almost killed me," shirttail relative Jim Stanford said.  After a meal with her family, Pam offered him a slice of cherry cheesecake pie. "It was the best pie I'd ever tasted. I ate almost the entire thing. It about stopped my heart."

  Long worked part-time as a caregiver in Haines and for the library in Cordova.  No matter where she lived,  "Pam had to have a water view," Terry said. He loved the sound of her laughter, and the way she enjoyed being outside with "her little glass of wine, and a bonfire on the beach."

  Her sons Dayton and Gavin built her casket, and son Jeremiah took the last year off work to care for her. "Pam was always looking at the good side of things, she was always setting us straight," Terry said.

 Pam Long is survived by Terry and Jeremiah in Cordova; Gavin, and Dayton and his family in Haines; sister Rebecca and her husband, Brayton Long, and their family in Haines; brother Jack Jackson and his family in Wasilla; seven grandchildren and seven nieces and nephews.

Long had lived in Cordova about 14 years. She chose to be buried at Jones Point near her parents and other relatives.

Cards may be sent to Terry Long at PO Box 431, Cordova AK 99574