Jamie is fond of quoting a line from a well-known country song in describing his career journey,

“God Blessed the Broken Road that Led Me Straight to You.”

“I am exactly where I set out to be over 40 years ago,” he says. “I just didn’t know it at that time. In fact, it didn’t even exist then.

​Originally aimed toward a career in psychiatry, Jamie entered Northwestern University Medical

School in Chicago at age 19 where he studied medicine. After one year of medical school, he

switched courses, returning to the Evanston Campus to complete an undergraduate degree before heading off to the University of Illinois College of Law in Champaign where, after three years, he obtained his law degree in 1979.

​Upon becoming a lawyer, Jamie joined his father, Durward Long, in the practice of law in the Quad Cities. In addition to assisting Durward’s full-time trial practice, Jamie handled the firm’s real estate and estate planning practice. Over time, Jamie found himself confronting more and more legal issues which are today considered elder law issues. At the time, the field of elder law was yet to be officially recognized. In 1997, Jamie joined the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys and became the first Elder Law Attorney in the Quad Cities. He has concentrated his legal practice ever since in the fields of elder and disability law.

​Jamie’s passion for seniors and the problems and issues of aging comes naturally. Having spent much of his childhood with older family members who helped raise him, one of the defining influences of his personal and professional lives was losing three older family members to whom he was especially close to nursing care and, ultimately, death between the time he turned 15 and the time he turned 22. His grandmother spent her last four years with dementia in a local nursing home. These events are the wellspring of Jamie’s passion to enhance, enrich and empower the lives of seniors, the disabled, and those who manage their care.

In 2008, Jamie founded GolderCare Solutions Unlimited, LLC, as a care management and

advocacy business. Even though GolderCare is not a law office and Jamie does not practice law in GolderCare, his legal expertise adds perspective and breadth to GolderCare’s multi-specialty team. In addition to being the CEO, Jamie serves in GolderCare as a Benefits Advocate, advising clients on their long-term care planning and decisions.

Jamie serves on the board of the Quad City Elderly Consortium, a local group of professionals that collaborate together to serve our area seniors.