Val Jean Mae Long

Val Jean M. Long, 85, surrounded by family, passed away peacefully at home on March 20, 2012, after a courageous battle with leukemia.

Val Jean was born in Franklin, NE, to John and Frieda Wessels. She married Arthur Long and spent her life as a loving and devoted wife and mother. Val Jean was an active member of St. John's United Methodist Church, volunteered for many years with the Blank Guild at Iowa Methodist Hospital, and enjoyed daily walks and table chats at Southridge Mall with friends she’d made there.

She is survived by her three children, Kevin (Ronda) Long of Des Moines, Jean (Joel) Akers of West Des Moines, and Dee Long of Los Angeles, CA; four grandchildren, Angela Long, Jennifer Long, Nicholas Davis, and Samantha Akers; as well as her extended family.

Val Jean was preceded in death by her parents, her husband of 49 years, Art, and her sister, Elaine Gidley.

Funeral services will be 10 a.m., Saturday, March 24, 2012, at Hamilton’s on Westown Parkway, 3601 Westown Parkway, with burial at Graceland Cemetery in Creston. A visitation will be from 5 to 7 p.m. Friday, at the funeral home.

The family would like to thank Dr. Shreck and the staff of the John Stoddard Cancer Center, the Powell nursing staff at Iowa Methodist Medical Center, HCI Care Services of Central Iowa, and the caregivers who took care of their mother over the last year.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests memorial contributions in Val Jean’s name to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society Iowa Chapter or the Food bank of Iowa.

www.HamiltonsFuneralHome.com

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