| Allen Rhodes DeLong |
Department lawyer
Published: September 28 The Washington Post
Allen R. DeLong, 93, who retired in 1974 as a lawyer in the Commerce
Department’s Office of General Counsel and retired from the Army Reserve
in 1979 at the rank of colonel, died Sept. 3 of kidney failure at the
Knollwood military retirement community in Washington.
The death was confirmed by a daughter, Diane Fitzpatrick.
Col. DeLong, who practiced labor law for 27 years, joined the Commerce
Department in 1969. He previously was a trial lawyer for the National
Labor Relations Board for 12 years. He briefly left the board in 1959 for
about two years to serve as a special assistant on labor matters to former
Commerce secretaries Lewis Strauss and Frederick Mueller.
Allen Rhodes DeLong was a native Washingtonian and a 1937 graduate of
Woodrow Wilson High School. He was a 1941 graduate of Washington
and Lee University and a 1947 graduate of George Washington University
law school.
He served in the Army in Europe during World War II. and in 1944
participated in the Battle of Metz in France. His decorations included the
Bronze Star Medal.
He lived in Arlington’s Crystal City neighborhood before moving to
Knollwood in 1992.
He was a former president of the Circus Saints & Sinners Club, a charitable
organization, and a member of Diplomatic and Consular Officers Retired, a
foreign affairs professional organization.
His first marriage, to Jane Voelcker, ended in divorce. His second wife,
Blanche Lavery DeLong, died in 2012 after 42 years of marriage.
Survivors include two daughters from his first marriage, Diane Fitzpatrick of
Atlanta and Gretchen DeLong of Warrenton; three grandchildren; and one
great-granddaughter.
— Megan McDonough
Published: September 28 The Washington Post
Allen R. DeLong, 93, who retired in 1974 as a lawyer in the Commerce
Department’s Office of General Counsel and retired from the Army Reserve
in 1979 at the rank of colonel, died Sept. 3 of kidney failure at the
Knollwood military retirement community in Washington.
The death was confirmed by a daughter, Diane Fitzpatrick.
Col. DeLong, who practiced labor law for 27 years, joined the Commerce
Department in 1969. He previously was a trial lawyer for the National
Labor Relations Board for 12 years. He briefly left the board in 1959 for
about two years to serve as a special assistant on labor matters to former
Commerce secretaries Lewis Strauss and Frederick Mueller.
Allen Rhodes DeLong was a native Washingtonian and a 1937 graduate of
Woodrow Wilson High School. He was a 1941 graduate of Washington
and Lee University and a 1947 graduate of George Washington University
law school.
He served in the Army in Europe during World War II. and in 1944
participated in the Battle of Metz in France. His decorations included the
Bronze Star Medal.
He lived in Arlington’s Crystal City neighborhood before moving to
Knollwood in 1992.
He was a former president of the Circus Saints & Sinners Club, a charitable
organization, and a member of Diplomatic and Consular Officers Retired, a
foreign affairs professional organization.
His first marriage, to Jane Voelcker, ended in divorce. His second wife,
Blanche Lavery DeLong, died in 2012 after 42 years of marriage.
Survivors include two daughters from his first marriage, Diane Fitzpatrick of
Atlanta and Gretchen DeLong of Warrenton; three grandchildren; and one
great-granddaughter.
— Megan McDonough