Ruth F. MacKay Long

Ruth (MacKay) Long ,“Ruthie”, was born on May 2, 1926 and raised in Malden Massachusetts with one older sister. She was a great student and longed to go to college to become a teacher. Graduating from Malden High School in 1944 as secretary of her class she received a full scholarship to BU, but her family could not afford bus fare so she gave up her dream and started work as a secretary at the Malden Trust Company. She loved her work and adored banking!

She met her husband, Andrew Long, “Andy”, during the 1940s when she and her sister belonged to the Girls’ Service Organization (GSO) at the Charlestown Army & Navy YMCA. They loved to dance and were the center of attention when they jitterbugged! He finally proposed after 12 years of dating (she had practically given up) and they were married on May 24th, 1958. They moved to Wakefield where they bought a house, got a dog and had a series of cats (she loved animals!) and lived for 25 years. . They did not vacation much, but banking friends took a yearly trip to Bermuda to and she was bitten by the golf bug.

Future newspaper write-ups for her achievements would say that she took 5 years off from work to raise a family, but in fact she had always planned to be a stay-at-home mom and have many children. As fate would have it, however, they only had one child, their beloved Audrey. After Audrey started school, the bank needed her and she found herself back in the working world. As it turned out she became a pioneer for her daughter and her daughter’s close friends, showing them that it was possible to have a career and still put family first. Eventually she was able to add a cherished Italian daughter to her family when they welcomed an exchange student, Annarosa, during Audrey’s senior year at Wakefield High, creating family bonds that last to this day.

Ruth’s career flourished. She worked her way up the ladder at the bank and by the time she retired after 46 years she was Vice President and Secretary of the Corporation. She made many lifelong friends at the Malden Trust Company. She was also actively involved in Zonta International, National Association of Bank Women, and the American Institute of Banking. She always considered Malden her home and served on the boards of the Malden Hospital, the Malden Home for the Aged, and the Malden High School Scholarship. She planned her high school reunions into her 80s.

Ruth followed her best friends (met during the years in GSO) to a retirement community in Florida named Barefoot Bay. She and Andy had fun in the sun there for almost 20 years—golfing (she got a hole in one!), traveling, and playing shuffleboard and cards with friends as well as sharing many vacations with her family. She was never a fan of outdoor exercise but she enjoyed riding a three-wheeled bike around the Bay! She was an officer in several clubs there as well: the New England Club, AARP, and the Ladies 9-Hole Golf League and belonged to several others.

She and Andy were snowbirds, migrating back north every summer where they bought a home in York Maine with their daughter and wonderful son-in-law Neil O’Connor. Two of the brightest lights in her life were her grandchildren Kelly and Andrew. She loved nothing better than teaching them cards and playing board games with them for hours on end. She was happiest in the yard with her family watching the ocean with a glass of Chablis and crackers and cheese! Even though she didn’t enjoy cooking, she will be forever remembered for her flag cake on the 4th of July! While in Maine she and Andy would also visit Andy’s side of the family in Bath, and every year had the time of their lives boating to Boothbay with Cora and Penn.

Seven years ago she and Andy moved to York full time to be closer to family. They enjoyed 5 years there but winter woes led them to Brooksby Village, where she died peacefully in her sleep on May 8, 2013. She was 87, and had just celebrated her birthday with her husband and daughter in the sunshine with a glass of wine and shrimp cocktail overlooking Boston.

She was a fun-loving organizer and planner, always ready for an activity and always prepared. She loved company to drop in and would go out to shop or visit on a moment’s notice. She had endless patience. We will all miss her terribly.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in her name to Lahey Clinic and mailed to Philanthropy Office, Lahey Clinic, 41 Mall Road, Burlington, MA 01805.