Marjorie Louise Long

Marge Long passed peacefully at Liberty Commons on October 3, 2023. It was a life well lived with lots of laughter, family, friends and a career spanning more than 50 years in the clothing business on Main Street in Chatham.

She was predeceased by her parents John (Jack) and Gertrude (Gertie) Reardon, all 9 brothers and sisters, and her loving husband, Robert Long. Born on November 28,1930 in Durham, NH, she was the youngest of 10 children.

After the death of her Father, Marge and her Mother came to Chatham in 1946 spending their summer working at the Mattaquasson Inn. It was during that summer she met the love of her life, Robert (Bob) Long.

Marge and Bob married in 1949 and spent the next 69 years sharing a happy life together. They settled in Chatham and had three sons, the twins, Robert (Bobby) and Ronald (Ronnie),and Alan. After moving off Cape for work, they returned to their beloved Chatham in 1965. They immediately immersed themselves in the Chatham Community.

Marge was a fixture on Main Street where she worked with Harry Collingwood and Jerry Belliveau at Puritan Clothing. They were a special trio renowned for their spectacular Fourth of July Parade Floats and involvement on Main Street. Marge was proud to have been the first female manager at Puritan Clothing.

Her first retirement occurred after 25 years in 1993.

Marge and Bob took advantage of early retirement and travelled the country with their best friends the Laphams. The goal was to visit all 50 states, but their travels spanned the world. They had special affinity for their timeshare family and friends at Westwind I Club Cable Beach, Nassau, Bahamas.

But Chatham called again and Marge began her second career on Main Street with her dear friend Sandy Wycoff Lang at “Marge’s Place” and Chatham T’s and the Chatham Clothing Bar where she continued to work until she was 89 years old.

She was a fixture on Main Street for nearly 60 years being active in the Chatham Merchants Association and Chamber of Commerce. She and Bob were some of the founding members of First Night Chatham. The Noise Parade was conceived from their extensive time in the Bahamas where they enjoyed the Junkanoo in Nassau.

Important memories: Time at the Cuppola Camp on North Beach with Harry and Janet Collingwood. She and Bob were avid Boston Red Sox fans. She was a mean card player, bocci player, crossword puzzles, cribbage, dominos, pinochle, shuffleboard, blackjack - and she always won! Cooking was a talent which she inherited from her parents who had a bakery in Durham, NH. She made the best blueberry muffins and Mac ‘n cheese which she made for the Chatham Fire Department during the holidays.

She is survived by her sons Bobby (Darlene Long), Ronnie (Leslie Fotiu) and Alan (Pat Long), her ten grandchildren Scott Long (Cari), Missi Long (Daniel), Jonathan Long (Jacqueline), Timothy Long (Jessica), Casey Long, Nicholas Long, Amy Zackman (Todd), Michael Beaton (Dyan), Elizabeth Phillips (Matthew) and Carolyn Fotiu (Beau) and her 19 great-grandchildren and too many nieces and nephews to count.

She was affectionately known as “Marge the Sarge Always in Charge”, Mom, Gramma, Gigi. She was fiercely independent and feisty to the end. Donations can be made to Chatham First Night, PO Box 80, Chatham, MA, 02633 or Chatham Fire Association located at PO Box 751, Chatham, MA, 02633.

There will be a Celebration of Life at some time in the near future.