Mary Elizabeth Long

Mary Elizabeth Long RICHMOND, Ind. – Mary Elizabeth Long, died Sunday, May 30, 2010, at Reid Hospital. She was born in Kansas City, Missouri, on September 8, 1919, to William Earl Janes, MD, of Kansas and Mrs. Susan Stitt Janes, a native of Illinois. The family settled in Eureka, Kansas. She had one sister, Frances Louise, and one infant brother, William Earl Jr., both of whom preceded her in death. Mary Elizabeth was raised in Eureka and graduated from Eureka High School in 1937. She continued her education at the University of Kansas (KU), Lawrence, where she earned a BA in Psychology and election to Phi Beta Kappa. Post graduate work included MA in Social Service Administration from the University of Chicago and a Master of Divinity from Earlham School of Religion in Richmond, Indiana. During her college years, Mary Elizabeth participated in a Peace Camp program at Estes Park Colorado and she continued working for peace and social justice in the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom, as well as the League of Women Voters and the Democratic Party. In 1942 Mary Elizabeth married James Clarence Pinney, MD, of Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin. She and James had three children. Mary Elizabeth subsequently married Wesley Ernest Long of Sturgeon Bay, who brought two more children to the family. While living in Sturgeon Bay, Mary Elizabeth raised her children, was a feature story writer for the Door County Advocate and the Green Bay Press-Gazette, worked as a substitute teacher at Sturgeon Bay High School, and assisted her husband with his business. Mary Elizabeth moved to Madison, Wisconsin, in 1960 where she practiced psychiatric social work at the University of Wisconsin Hospitals. She worked with new mothers and their infants on the OB Unit and with children who were hospitalized on the pediatric unit. It was during this time that she became an expert on child abuse and participated in drafting the language for the first mandatory child abuse reporting law in the State of Wisconsin. This law aimed at identifying abused children and setting in motion a legal process to investigate the child’s situation and either provide services for them in their home or remove them from their home and place them in a safer environment. She later worked for the State of Wisconsin Department of Health, and taught Master’s level social work students during their field placements at both the University of Wisconsin, School of Social Work in Madison and at the Eau Claire campus. In 1972 Mary Elizabeth had moved to Buffalo, New York to work at Transitional Services, Inc. (TSI) As the CEO, she established TSI’s therapeutic living environment and established professional social and mental health services including individual assessment, structured rehabilitation, case management and counseling, allowing residents to work towards their rehabilitation goals. While in Buffalo she also provided support to her sister, Frances, who was experiencing serious health problems. After a period of study at Pendle Hill in Pennsylvania, in 1978 Mary Elizabeth came to Richmond, Indiana, in order to attend Earlham School of Religion (ESR). While at ESR she served as pastor for Rich Square Friends Meeting and worked as a counselor for Preble County Mental Health Center in Eaton, Ohio. In 1984 she earned the Master of Divinity degree from ESR and began a private pastoral counseling practice in Richmond while continuing to work at Eaton. She later retired from Preble County Mental Health Center but maintained her personal practice in Richmond for some years. She was active in several Friends Meetings during her life and remained a member of First Friends Meeting in Richmond at her death. Quakerism and Quaker principles were deeply important to her throughout her whole life. Her work at the meeting included adult education and the exploration of spirituality. She led workshops and seminars, her inquiring mind always seeking beyond the schoolbook and the classroom to encounter the reality of the human spirit. In 2005 she moved from her Richmond home to Friends Fellowship Community where she was active in residents’ committees. Mary Elizabeth is survived by son, James Charles Pinney of Massachusetts; daughters, Laura Beverly Long of Richmond, Mary Carolyn Aoyama (Stephen) of Maryland, Ruth Leslie Ann Ignacio of Hawaii, and Julia James Dibner (Steve) of Missouri; and grandchildren, Jessica Rachael Theis, Jordan James Aoyama, Olivia Ignacio and Gabriel Ignacio. A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. on Sunday, June 20, 2010, in the Community Room at Friends Fellowship Community, 2030 Chester Blvd., Richmond, Indiana, with Dortha M. Meredith and Mary Probasco officiating. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests gifts be made to the Good Samaritan Fund, c/o First Friends Meeting, 2010 Chester Blvd., Richmond, IN 47374.

Mary Elizabeth Long

September 8, 1919 - May 30, 2010