Heidi Karin Smith Long, of Woodbridge, Virginia, passed away on November 19, 2019. Born on November 10, 1943, in Breslau, Germany. In 1962, she immigrated to the United States, with her family. In her late teens, she competed in and won several local pageants. As Miss Richmond, she competed in the Miss Virginia pageant in Roanoke, Virginia, where she won the title and was crowned Miss Virginia 1964. Representing the Old Dominion as Miss Virginia 1964, she competed in the Miss USA pageant.
With her pageant days completed, in 1965, Heidi looked to the future and became a flight attendant with Eastern Airlines, Inc. While at Eastern, she was promoted to the level of Senior Flight Attendant. During her career, she earned several awards and commendations. Most notably, the Airlines’ Five Star Award and the California Merit Award from the Palm Springs Fire Department for outstanding service and assistance for administering emergency life saving CPR while in-flight to a passenger in cardiac arrest. She retired from Eastern after approximately 26 years of dedicated service.