Frederick Long

we announce that Heaven’s

gates opened and Frederick

Long stepped through and

entered the holy embrace of

the Lord. Fred passed

peacefully, in his sleep, of

natural causes, during the

wee hours of May 18, 2020

at the age of 91.

Fred was born in Dun-

kirk on January 25, 1929,

the youngest child of Carl

and Henrietta

(Wingertszahn) Long. He

recalled fondly of growing

up in a family filled with

love and laughter. His

childhood home was a con-

stant flurry of activity filled

with friends and family. He

used to say it was the

greatest time to grow up. It

was in his younger years

that Fred acquired the

nickname Pete from his fa-

ther, and it carried with

him throughout his life.

Fred attended Dunkirk

High School and graduated

with the Class of 1947.

During his high school

years Fred was immersed in

sports and was known to be

quite a gifted athlete. He

excelled as a running back

on the varsity football team,

was an accomplished

basketball player, and a not-

able hurdler on the track

team. He earned Letters in

all three sports. Fred later

played City League Basket-

ball. He also played City

League Softball where he

was noted by many as one

of the best in league.

Fred went on to serve his

country. He enlisted in the

United States Army during

the Korean Conflict. He

was assigned to the Army

Security Agency (ASA),

which was comprised of

Army soldiers specially

trained in military intelli-

gence.

Upon leaving the Army,

Fred continued to serve his

community as a member of

the Dunkirk Police Depart-

ment from 1952 to 1960.

Back in the day, Fred used

to walk the beat in the bus-

tling downtown area and

sometimes he would direct

traffic. One day a pretty

young woman crossed in

front of him and caught his

eye. He did some detective

work, found out her name

was Mary Ann Schwerk, of

Silver Creek, and he even-

tually asked her out. The

rest is history. They mar-

ried on June 22, 1957, at

the Zion Lutheran Church

in Silver Creek. The young

couple went on to have

three children and eventu-

ally moved into the house

on the Avenue. And, just

like his parents, Fred and

Mary Ann soon had a flurry

of activity of family and

friends at their house. It

was a great neighborhood

filled with wonderful neigh-

bors and lots of children

and the whole group be-

came known as “The

Corner”. They held neigh-

borhood parties, hung out

in everyone’s yards and be-

came quite a close-knit

group.

When Fred left the police

force, he went to work at

Greater Buffalo Press,

working in the mat layout

department and pressman

until his retirement.

Fred became active in

Little League when his sons

started to play ball. He

coached for one year and

then managed the Lakeside

Club team for a span of 10

years. He thoroughly en-

joyed this time of his life

spent with his sons. He

loved working with all the

kids on his team, helping

them develop the skills to

not only make them good

ball players but, more im-

portantly, good team

players. The Lakeside Club

even went on to capture the

League Championship one

year. When his sons moved

on to Babe Ruth and even-

tually City League softball

Fred and Mary Ann never

missed a game. He enjoyed

watching professional

sports as well. He was an

avid Dallas Cowboys,

Cleveland Indian, Michigan

State, and LA Lakers fan.

Fred and his daughter

shared a very close bond

and spent many an hour to-

gether. Fred loved to drive

along the lake and

throughout the city remin-

iscing of times when he

grew up. They often drove

through Point Gratiot

where they would enjoy

sunsets and walks. They set

out on adventures together

travelling to Philadelphia,

Boston, New York City,

and Cleveland. They spent

5 days in Washington DC,

visiting the White House,

Capital, Arlington

Cemetery, Mount Vernon,

and all the monuments. It

was the same destination he

and Mary Ann had enjoyed

on their honeymoon many

years before.

But nothing touched his

heart more than the birth of

his granddaughter. He and

Mary Ann were blessed to

have spent a great deal of

time with her as a child.

They were ever-present

throughout her school

years and all her cheerlead-

ing activities. The birth of

their two great grandsons

were a further blessing Fred

was grateful to enjoy.

Fred had a love of drum

corps. He was a past

member of the Flying

Dutchman of Hose Com-

pany #1 with whom he

marched and played bugle.

He was a past member of

the Lakeside Club, the

American Legion Post 62,

and was a lifelong member

of St. John’s United Church

of Christ.

Fred loved to work in his

yard. He would be out there

for hours working on his

flowers, sprucing up the

gardens, and manicuring

the lawn. He grew his

Morning Glories every

year, meticulously stringing

them and nurturing them

until they were a sight to

behold! He also took pride

in his clematis vines that

were sprinkled throughout

the yard.

Fred had a true compas-

sion for animals. He and

Mary Ann have rescued

well over 40 cats (and 1

dog) through the years.

Most were adopted into

their own home. They also

had Bassett Hounds when

the kids were younger.

But most of all, Fred

loved people. He always

had a smile and kind word

to all he met. He will always

be remembered for his

soft-spoken, easygoing, and

humble manner. He had an

incredible gift of gab and

could spends hours talking

with friends, neighbors,

and family. Fred was a guy

everyone enjoyed seeing

and hanging out with. His

quick wit and humor were

enjoyed by all. He was a

good man who lived a good

life in an honorable

fashion. We always felt

blessed, and proud, to have

him as our patriarch.

Fred was a devoted and

loving husband. He and

Mary Ann were married

just shy of 63 years and

they shared a love that was

deep and abiding. They

were truly each other’s soul

mate and were inseparable.

As a father, grandpa, and

great grandpa he couldn’t

be beat. He loved with all

his heart, was always affec-

tionate, and provided

unending support and wis-

dom through the years. He

was a gentle man, and a true

gentleman, He left this

world the way he lived, with

grace and dignity. He will

be deeply missed.

Besides his parents, Fred

was preceded in death by

his sisters June (Donald)

Kochersberger, and Lor-

raine D. Long, his brother

Carl (Helen Pietrkiewicz)

Long, Jr, and his nephew

Carl R Long, III.

He is survived by his lov-

ing wife, Mary Ann

(Schwerk) Long, his two

sons, Frederick C. Long Jr,

of Dunkirk, Mitchell E.

Long, of Fredonia, one

daughter, Leslie A. Long

(Bill Carlson), of Dunkirk,

one granddaughter,

Lindsey A. (Bobby) Long

Peting, and 2 great grand-

sons, Andrew Bigelow and

Brayden Peting, all of Fre-

donia. He is also survived

by many nieces and

nephews, and cousins.

Arrangements for a fami-

ly burial, with military

honors, were made through

the

LARSON-TIMKO Funeral

Home. Online con-

dolences can be made at

larsontimkofuneralhome.com

Memorials may be made to

the Lakeshore Humane So-

ciety in Dunkirk.