Otelia A. Long

Funeral service for Mrs. Long will be:1:00pm ~ SaturdayHigh Street Church of Christ, Tuscumbia, AlabamaBro. Michael Roberts, officiatingInterment in Oakwood Cemetery, Tuscumbia, AlabamaThe body will be placed in the church at 12:00 Noon.Visitation with the family will be Friday, 6-8:00pm."Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints"Psalm 116:15Otelia Annette Mullins Long, daughter of the late Johnnie Mullins and Samantha Hosendove Mullins, was born in Leighton, Alabama. She departed this life on Tuesday, November 10, 2009.Otelia Long received her early Christian and academic education in a one-room school that had been built as a church by her great-grandfather, Parson George Ricks, the first black minister of the Church of Christ in the State of Alabama. She later moved to Tuscumbia, where she graduated as salutatorian of her Trenholm High School class. At Trenholm, she met and married William Mansel Long, Sr., and to this union two daughters and two sons were born. Mrs. Long continued her education at Alabama A&M University while raising her four children, attending school during the summers to earn her degree. Along with her husband, she valued education, making certain that all four of her children went to college. For twenty-eight years, Mrs. Long taught elementary education in the Colbert County schools. She was recruited by the superintendent to be one of the first teachers to integrate the school system.She was baptized on her great-grandfather's land, near the cemetery that Parson George established for members of his family, slaves, and the descendents of slaves. For eighty-eight years, she was a faithful member of High Street Church of Christ. She taught the teenage Sunday School class for thirty-five years, Vacation Bible School for forty years, and helped organize the Ladies Bible Class, which she lovingly and dutifully attended until confined by illness. She also served as the historian for the 75th church anniversary.Mrs. Long served as a role model and mentor for countless men and women through her service as a Bible teacher and schoolteacher.She was also active in the community as a member of AEA/NEA, the Colbert County Retired Teachers Association, and the Altruistic Elite Civic and Social Club.In addition to her parents, Mrs. Long was preceded in death by her husband William Mansel Long, Sr.; her oldest child Rosalyn Long Floyd; four brothers, Ricks Mullins, Jimmy Ward Mullins, Willie Flem Mullins, and Clifford Mullins; and two sisters Corine Shelby and Ola Pearl Parks.She is survived by one daughter, Jean Long Graves and her husband, Arthur; two sons, Dr. William Mansel Long, Jr., and Jon P. Long; grandchildren, Dr. Bridget J. Floyd, Dr. Lisa Graves Minor (Joey), Kenneth D. Graves (Tamekia), and Sherri Graves Smith (Charles); two great-grandchildren, Leslie Minor and Kristen Graves; three sisters, Dorothy Wesley, Gladys Hicks and Frankie Davis; one brother, Alfred Mullins; five nieces, Minnie Atkinson, Carolyn Gilliam, Vanessa Ballenger-Washington, Beverly Mullins, and Jennifer Davis Daniels, with whom she shared a special relationship; seven nephews, Dr. Robert (Bobby) Williams, Ed Mulllins, Tyrone Mullins, Ricky Mullins, Serthal Hicks, Greg Hicks, and Darryl Hicks; great-nieces, great-nephews, numerous cousins, other relatives, and friends.Thompson and Son Funeral Home, Tuscumbia, Alabama

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