Ronald William De Long
Last updated 10/5/2020 at 11am
Feb. 7, 1942 – Aug. 9, 2020
Ronald William De Long passed unexpectedly on August 9, 2020, in Rancho Mirage, California, at the age of 78. His wit, wisdom, and dry humor are dearly missed.
He was born in Los Angeles to the late Ronald and Margaret (Croft) De Long and raised in Los Angeles and Arcadia, California. He leaves a wife, Stephanie Kyser De Long, a sister, Linda Valliant (Bill), five children--Marti Duyshart (Eric), Debbie Suddarth (Jack), Terri De Long, Ronny De Long, Justin De Long (Patty) – one stepdaughter, Heather Walter, five grandchildren (Peter and Mark Duyshart, Jake and McKenna Suddarth, Meredith De Long), and two step-grandchildren (Ela Zielinski and Zev Walter).
He earned his BA at UCLA and MBA at USC and devoted much of his career and entrepreneurial spirit to the field of low vision. At the time of his passing, he was managing partner of Myoptica, a distributor of magnifying aids.
He previously served as CEO of Vision Advantage International, vice president of sales and marketing with Visionics Corp., and for many years, vice president of new business ventures at Coburn Optical.
He was past president and founder of the Low Vision Council of America, the founding Board Member of the Low Vision Division of The Vision Council, a former Board member of the Contact Lens Manufacturers Assn., and member of the American Optometric Association Low Vision Section. He was also a speaker and author on marketing, quality management, and low vision.
Whether it was trouncing The New York Times crossword, playing the market with his kids, following sports (especially golf) with a passion, or working on his websites, Ron remained a man of many interests. He traveled the world many times over and joyfully settled on small-town desert life in retirement.
Remembrances can be sent to Keawala'I Congregational Church, Makena, Hawaii, a place he loved dearly, or the UCLA Chancellors Blue and Gold Scholarship Fund. He was immensely proud that four generations of De Longs have now graduated from his alma mater.
