Obituary of Kathryn Joanne Long

LONG – Kathryn Joanne "Susie," 78, West Chester, formerly of Ebensburg and Spangler, Cambria County, died June 20, 2009, at 700 N. Franklin St., West Chester. Born Jan. 14, 1931, in Ebensburg, daughter of Leo Robert and Ursula (Reller) Kimball. Preceded in death by parents; brothers, William and Jack; and husband, James J. Long Jr., in 2006. Survived by children, Ray and Lea Dandrea, both of West Chester; Rick Dandrea, Allison Park; Bo Dandrea, Doylestown; Joel Dandrea, Haymarket, Va.; Jack Dandrea, Mount Lebanon; and Brenda Herzog, Phoenixville, and 13 grandchildren. Also survived by brother, L. Robert Kimball. A 1949 graduate of Ebensburg High School. She attended Penn State University, Erie campus, and studied journalism. Known as "Susie" since an early age, she married her first husband, Raymond L. Dandrea, M.D., in 1952, and resided in Spangler. Susie was a mother and wife and active in various community groups. From 1974 to 1980, she served as treasurer of the board of directors at the Cresson Lake Playhouse. She was the chairperson of the Playhouses' annual gala for seven years and a member of Applause Unlimited and the Theatre Association of Pennsylvania. She served as a member of the board of directors of the Citizens for the Arts in Pennsylvania from 1978 to 1982. In 1982, she was elected to the board of the Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art and enjoyed volunteering and organizing its auxiliary. Susie served on the board of directors for the Bedford Springs Music Festival and was a member of the Northern Cambria Auxiliary of the Johnstown Symphony. While living in Ebensburg, she also served on the board for the Ebensburg Public Library. Over the years, she personally pursued her love of the arts by enrolling in art classes at Mount Aloysius College and Indiana University, and courses in theater and contemporary literature at St. Francis College. She was an avid golfer and the president of the Women's League of Golfers at Cambrian Hills Golf Club. Susie was remarried to James J. "Jimmy" Long in 1984, and relocated to Chester County to a retirement community, where she enjoyed being closer to her children living in the area, reading and entertaining for family get-togethers. A lover of the sea and sand, she spent much of her last years traveling for a few months out of the winter to enjoy New Smyrna Beach, Fla., with her husband and family. She enjoyed trips in the summer and fall to the Avalon and Stone Harbor Jersey shores. Friends received from 6 to 8:30 p.m. Monday and from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. Tuesday at Long-Contres Funeral Home Inc., Northern Cambria. Funeral Mass will be celebrated at 11 a.m. Tuesday at Prince of Peace Chapel. Committal, North Barnesboro Cemetery. The family requests that memorial contributions be sent to Carmelite Nuns, Monastery of St. Therese of Lisieux, Mother John of the Cross OCD Prioress, P.O. Box 57, Loretto, Pa. 15940.