Jim's Story

Jim was born the middle child to a middle-class military family in town of Mineola on Long Island New York. Being from a military family, they moved many times within the next few years before settling in Dallas for ten years. During this time, Jim made some lifelong friends and learned many of life's lessons. Some through personal experience but mostly from the great morals instilled by his parents.

The promise of America was very real as Jim was growing up. He learned that no matter who you are or where you're from, if you worked hard and played by the rules, you could provide a good life for your family.

Jim's father, Fred Long, was born the older of two children and raised in East, Texas. He served our country in the Air Force during the Korean War and then returned to Texas where he joined the Army Reserves where he attained the rank of Master Sergeant before retiring. He taught Jim both a deep sense of patriotism and a strong belief in family responsibility. He never took a dime of credit for all his great deeds and was the anchor in which the entire family relied upon.

Jim's mother, Mildred, the daughter of a coal miner, had a tough childhood. She was one of eight children, six sisters and one brother. She grew up and worked hard on a farm in northeastern Pennsylvania. The stories of his mother's difficult childhood imbued in Jim a fierce sense of justice and a belief every child should be treated sternly yet fairly and that every child deserves to be loved.

The life that Fred and Mildred created for Jim, his two sisters and two brothers was a classic 1960s middle-class suburban childhood. Dallas in those days was the kind of place where everyone left their doors unlocked and the neighborhood kids all played on the block together. Jim was a Boy Scout and also had many entrepreneurial ventures. He has worked hard to try to uphold the great teachings his parents had afforded him.

Faith was central to his family. The Catholic Church confirmed him when he graduated from Sunday school, and Jim was also an altar boy with his church, Saint Pius X in Dallas, Texas. Jim remains a member of the Catholic Church and attends mass with his daughter regularly.

Jim has worked his entire life to make the life of those around him as good as possible. Working countless hours to come up with ground breaking ideas and attempting to make them a reality with every ounce of his being. Jim, on a daily basis, continues to create the best possible environment for all those around him. Regardless of the time constraints or obstacles that may confront him along the way.