Dr. Rodney Long D.D.S P.C., age 81 died on Friday, November 21st, 2021, in his home in Germantown, TN. He was born on Dec 1, 1939, in Bruce, Mississippi to Jesse & Annie Long. Rodney was the youngest son and had a brother named James Huey Long who passed at age one. He had three sisters Lily Knox, Bobbie Jean Logan and Carolyn Green. Rodney grew up as a child farming. Rodney had 3 children with his previous wife Dottie Davis Long who passed in 1991. He had three children with Dottie: Rodney Long Jr., James Long and Merrie Long. Rodney had many grandchildren: Austin Long (26) Hayden Long (19), Molly Long (18), Andrew Beck (8) and Anna Beck (7). He married Mary Susan Long after Dottie’s death, who has a daughter from her prior marriage named Terri Pflumn that lives in Germany. Terri has 3 children name Ian Pflumn (22), Olivia Pflumn (20) and Emily Pflumn (17) giving Rodney and Susan a total of 8 grandchildren.
Rodney attended Bruce high School, then moved to Memphis TN, to pursue a degree in Chemistry at the University of Memphis while working at Buckman Laboratory. He married Dorothy Davis Long whom he met at Cumberland Presbyterian Church. Rodney decided to pursue a career as a dentist and started attending the University of TN for an advanced degree. Rodney practiced dentistry for 41 years.
He married Susan McFarland Rowland in February 1992. Rodney and Susan attended Bellevue Baptist Church. Rodney retired in 2008 after having heart surgery. This was tough as he loved his patients. Rodney loved travel and taking long road trips and spending time with his family. He was a farmer at heart and truly enjoyed tinkering with things that were hard to repair. People would say if he could not fix it then it could not be fixed. He loved listening to Elvis when was younger and people said he even looked like Elvis.
Rodney had a passion for reading wellness books and the bible. He would frequently purchase sermons that he liked and would use it as a tool to witness to anyone. One of the things he loved to say was Prayer Changes Things. He also served in the National Guard and taught Sunday School and was a decan in Central Church many years ago. He never met a stranger and would talk to anyone, and was always fun loving, charming and witty. Rodney’s beliefs were always shown in his actions by helping others and providing guidance and advice when appropriate. In lieu of flowers, please donate to The American Diabetes Association, or St. Jude in his memory. Donations for St Jude should be addressed to Memorial Giving 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis TN 38105. Donation to the American Diabetes Associate should be mailed to Merrifield, VA 22116-7023. The following links can be used to make donations. http://fundraising.stjude.org/site/TR?fr_id=39300&px=7304518&pg=personal or http://giftfunds.stjude.org/Rodney_Long_Sr
The family will receive friends on Monday, November 22, 2021 from 5:00 PM until 7:00 PM at Family Funeral Care, 4925 Summer Ave, Memphis, TN 38122. The funeral service will held on Tuesday, November 23, 2021 from 10:00AM until 11:00AM at the funeral home. The committal service will held at Memorial Park, 5668 Poplar Avenue, Memphis, TN 38119.
Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.FamilyFuneralMemphis.com for the Long family.
