Michael E. Long

Michael E. Long

1932 – 2015

Mike Long, 83, passed away peacefully at his home in Denver, Colorado on November 6, 2015. A proud native of Altoona, Pennsylvania, Mike was born to Edward E. Long and Mary Mittendorfer on October 9, 1932.

Mike was a graduate of Altoona Catholic High School; received a B.A. in English from the University of Notre Dame (graduating magna cum laude); and an M.A. in Journalism from Marquette University. Like his father, Mike was a devoted fan of Notre Dame football.

Mike was a Captain in the U.S. Marine Corps and an F-9 fighter pilot. An avid pilot, Mike flew a number of other airplanes – including landing one of the biggest planes every built while writing for the National Geographic Magazine. Mike also taught military acrobatics and civilian aerobatics.

Mike joined the National Geographic Magazine in 1966 as a photographer and picture editor before becoming a Senior Writer and Aviation Specialist. Mike has over 32 feature articles to his credit in the fields of aviation, science and socio-cultural field work.

Mike received numerous awards and recognition throughout his career for his aviation articles and his photography. In 1978 Mike’s photograph of the Opera House in Sydney, Australia was chosen by Carl Sagan at NASA to be among the Images of Earth electronically inscribed aboard the two Voyager spacecraft. This photo also appears in Sagan’s book, Murmurs of Earth.

Mike moved to Colorado after he retired from the Geographic in 1994, but continued to write. As Mike noted in an interview with the Glenwood Post in 1996, “I’ve never had one goal; it’s always been a series of goals.”

When Mike moved to Colorado in 1994 he was able to focus on the other great passions of his life: fly fishing, dory white water rafting, gardening, taking care of his two small Maltese, and – above all -  playing his beloved Beethoven on his Steinway B Grand Piano.

Mike will be forever missed by his family and all those whose hearts he touched. Mike is survived by his son, Mark Long, and daughter, Darrah Long.

Funeral services will be held on Thursday, November 12, 2015 at 11:00 am at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Catholic Church in Littleton, CO. The funeral will be preceded by a Recitation of the Rosary at 10:30 am.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you consider making a donation in his name to the Inpatient Care Center at Lowry (Denver Hospice)(http://www.thedenverhospice.org/Pages/Home.aspx).

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