The Dynamic Student Scholarship - Hartwick College

Generosity
PORTRAIT IN PHILANTHROPY:
David Long ’83 and
Stephanie Isgur Long ’84
By Elizabeth Steele | Elizabeth Steele is a professional writer and partner of President Margaret L. Drugovich.
Lives Well Lived
It takes more than a yardstick, a calendar, or a stock return to measure a life. Consider Stephanie Isgur Long ’84 and
David Long ’83. The common gauges of professional achievement and personal resources prove their success. Yet there
is so much more to this power couple than numbers can express. The qualities that defy appraisal—generosity, insight,
and attention, to name a few—are the very features that define who they are.
Professional Assessment
Their worth could certainly be weighed by
promotions. David was recently elected Chief
Executive Officer of Liberty Mutual Group,
one of the world’s largest insurance enterprises
and a Fortune 100 firm with $33.2 billion
in revenues and $1.7 billion in net income
(2010). This recognition follows quickly on his
appointment as president and member of the
board of directors of Liberty Mutual Group
in 2010, president of Liberty International in
2009, executive vice president and president
of Liberty Mutual’s Commercial Markets in
2005.
The fast pace suits him. “New challenges keep
me engaged,” David explains. “Finding the
right environment can prepare you well to
compete with anyone, in any field. This was
true for me at Hartwick and remains so today.
Our company is very complex so I have been
challenged yet I have also always felt valued.”
David joined Liberty Mutual in 1985 as
a financial analyst soon after earning his
Hartwick degree magna cum laude with a
major in Mathematics. His status as a John
Christopher Hartwick Scholar proved to
be a harbinger of achievements to come. He
continued his studies at Boston College,
graduating first in his class with a master’s in
finance.
Stephanie specialized in interpersonal relations
as a Psychology major at Hartwick. A minor in
Women’s Studies brought her together with
the woman who became her favorite professor
—Winifred “Win” Wandersee, now
deceased, was Professor of History, Chair of
the Faculty, and a nationally-recognized expert
on the history of women in the workforce.
Stephanie says those studies “gave me an edge”
when she built the archives collection of the
Dana Hall School, outside of Boston. After 18
years on the job, she left the position a few years
ago to concentrate on family needs, and this
year started an innovative upholstery fabric and
wallpaper business with a designer friend.
Value Beyond Measure
Their intellectual energy springs from
David and Stephanie’s keen, well-educated
minds. Their full lives grow from a profound
partnership rooted in a strong marriage. Their
joy flows from parenting two beautiful children.
And their tenacity has stemmed from necessity
as they raise a child with a disability.
Daughter Hayley is now in college, son Oliver
in high school. He is a high-functioning young
man with autism.
“There isn’t anything I don’t know about
autism,” Stephanie says. “Like many parents,
I have had to become an expert in my child’s
health.” Researching the disorder, studying
related issues, and evaluating progress in the
field have essentially become her life’s work.
For more than 10 years, Stephanie and
David have been involved in YouthCare
at Massachusetts General Hospital, a
therapeutically-based initiative that helps
children and young adults with autism
26 | The Wick | Summer 2011