By James Ronald Skains
Journal Correspondent

For three consecutive elections, no one came close to catching State Senator Mike Smith of Winnfield when all the votes were counted on election night. However, the reality of term limits enacted by the Legislature and approved by the voters has caught up to Senator Smith, and the 2007 regular Legislative session will be his last as a State Senator.

The first to announce his candidacy for the soon-to-be open seat is Winnfield native Gerald Long.

"This is my first time to become a candidate for an elected office at any level," Long told the Piney Woods Journal. "I consider myself a new type of political candidate, one who has been very active in nearly all phases of civic affairs in whatever community that I have lived and worked."

"Politics was not something that interested me until I retired and became more aware of the struggle that so many people face in their lives on a daily basis just to survive," Long pointed out. "I've always appreciated the value of education in preparing for life's challenges but now education is more important than ever in preparing our young people to face a very uncertain and changing future."

Long is a 1962 graduate of Winnfield High School and was selected as Honorable Mention third team WHS Team of the Century. Long was a place kicker back in the days of straight ahead kicking before the days the soccer style kickers took over the kicking game in football.

His athletic ability earned him a scholarship to Northwestern State University where he became an integral part of the NSU football team. After graduating in 1965, Long became a teacher and coach at Leesville High School.

Later, Long became a State Farm agent and spent many years as an agent in Abbeville, Louisiana before retiring and moving back to his adopted hometown of Natchitoches. Since returning to Natchitoches, Long has been very active in civic affairs in the area especially the Fellowship of Christian Athletics (FCA).

"I first became aware of the Fellowship of Christian of Athletes as a high school coach while a member of the faculty at Leesville high school in 1966," Long pointed out. "From that moment on, FCA has impacted my life as a coach, a parent, and volunteer with FCA."

The FCA promotes "One Way to Play" which challenges young people to say no to alcohol and drugs. The FCA also encourages students to stay in school and graduate plus engage in a healthy lifestyle of abstinence until marriage.

"I"ve served as a regional staff person for FCA in Central Louisiana for ten parishes for a number of years, Long noted. "I think that this gives me a real advantage in helping prepare the future of our young people while serving in the State Senate."

Four of the ten parishes in which Long serves as FCA staff person, are located in Senate District 31. Winn, Grant, Natchitoches, and Sabine are the four parishes in Long's FCA area.

"In my ten-parish area, there are two colleges with sports teams and approximately 75 senior high and junior high school," Long said in elaborating on the reach of FCA. "Over 70% of those schools have an active FCA program. The FCA program at each school is known as a "Huddle" and is comprised of a teacher-coach sponsor; however, the student athletes then elect their captains and other officers and set their leadership agendas."

Some 3,000 young people are actively involved in the FCA ten-parish region that Long serves. FCA crosses all denominational and racial lines. It is Christ-centered ministry for student athletes.

Membership in FCA is at an all-time high in the United States in both high schools and universities. Long will continue to serve as regional director of FCA until he begins campaigning full time for Senate District Seat 31.

Gerald Long and his twin brother, Carroll who was also a State Farm Agent and later an executive with the company grew up in the family home which was adjacent to the Winnfield Recreation Center where they honed their athletic skills as teenagers. Gerald was also a catcher of note on baseball and softball teams in Winnfield before moving to Northwestern in 1962.

The Long twins as they were known in their teenage years have always been on the periphery of politics. They grew up on Grove Street in Winnfield within sight of the well known "Pea Patch Farm" owned by former Governor Earl K. Long who was a third cousin to Gerald.

In addition, Long had a Uncle, P.K. Smith who served one term in the Louisiana House of Representatives in the mid-1960's. Also, in the circle of politics was older brother Jimmy who served for over 30 years in the Louisiana House of Representatives.

Jimmy's passion as a Legislator was education and he served as Chairman of the House Education Committee for many years. Former Representative Jimmy Long was the leading force in seeing Northwestern State University through some tough times back in the late 1980's when the actual future of the University was in question.

Other well known members of the "Winnfield Long Political Clan" such as former Congressman Speedy O. Long, Congressman Gillis Long and former U.S. Senator Russell Long were distant cousins to the first candidate to announce his intentions to seek the open Senate District 31 seat in the 2007 election.

"The key to our future in this country is changing people's attitude, especially the younger generation," Long emphasized. "We must become kinder and gentler as well as become better educated as a whole."

"A college education is very expensive these days and too many students graduate with a heavy debt burden of student loans," Long pointed out. "My generation could actually work their way through college, but not anymore. We have to find better solutions to this problem that the younger generation can relate too."

"Good paying jobs are another key component in our area to stop its economic decline," Long noted. "Our economic mainstay for so many years in District 31, the forest industry is facing terrific competition in the global economy. The same is true for our farmers."

"We have great natural resources in our district that can be further developed to spur our economy," Long emphasized. "Natchitoches now has a downtown Events Center which should be a boon for the downtown river front area. I don't think that Toledo Bend Lake has nearly reached its potential as a recreational and tourist destination."

"The Red River is a great assets from not only the commerce standpoint of shipping goods and services but also as a recreational destination," Long explained. "Each parish in District 31 has a portion of the Kisatchie National Forest which is great economic resource in itself."

"Even with the problems that we face in the District, there are still a lot of opportunities," Long concluded. "I want to help open those doors for the people in District 31 that includes Natchitoches, Winn, Grant and DeSoto parishes."

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