William J. Long

Class of 1982

Bill Long was born in Fayetteville, NY, in August 1931 where he spent his entire childhood. Upon graduation, he enrolled at Manhattan college. He served in the Korean war and later finished his studies at Hobart College in 1955.

After a short time working for IBM, Bill entered the confectionery industry working for Ross Empire State Brokers, Inc. in upstate New York. In 1972, Bill and longtime Ross associate Nick Bellanca, left to work for Jones-Sproul, another upstate confectioner broker, and soon after purchased the business. They renamed the business LBM Sales Inc.

With hard work and a great sales and merchandising team, LBM Sales Inc. soon became the biggest brokerage in the state.

Bill was very active in the industry including the Empire State Candy Club where he served several positions including President. He was very honored to be inducted into the Candy Hall of Fame in 1982.

Bill relocated the business back to Fayetteville NY, where he worked as owner/president until his death in 1995. He and his wife Marilyn had four children.