Michael Raymond Longpre

Michael Raymond Longpre. Many in the community know the name and even though some would say he was an acquired taste, we all know that if he wasn’t your taste, then that was your problem and not his. He had his people – his chosen family - and he was honored that they chose to accept him and love him even with all his quirks, wisecracks, stubbornness, sarcastic responses, and odd sense of humor.

Mike grew up in Michigan with his parents, Larry and Sharon, and three spunky sisters, Julie, Machelle and Sheila. Despite being a true Michigander, loving all things Red Wings and Lions, he knew he had a calling to serve, and he joined the Air Force fresh out of high school. Life in the Air Force took him to Alaska as a security policeman and ultimately his time there is what led him to Morganton – as it was there that he met Terri Miller Waters, his first wife and mother of his only two children, Jennifer and Kristen, or as he called them Big Bit and Little Bit.

His unwavering decades-long dedication to the thin blue line saw him through his time as a Morganton Department of Public Safety Patrol Officer, founding member of the SWAT Team and lastly as a Detective. Being in law enforcement wasn’t just a job for him, it was engrained in him – it was one of the largest and most significant parts of his being.

However, even with all the professional achievements and lives he touched through his service to the community, Mike’s proudest accomplishments in life were his two girls. While all his family was in Michigan, Mike chose to keep his roots firmly planted in Morganton because that’s where he was able to watch them grow into fiercely strong and independent women. Mike was beyond thankful for the men they chose to marry and start their families with - Jennifer with her husband, Matt Miller, and their two boys, Luke and James, and Kristen with her husband, Chase Johnson, and their two children, Lila and Waylon. Mike beamed with love and pride knowing that despite all his shortcomings, he had raised his girls to be the most faithful daughters, loving wives and devoted mothers.

Mike spent the better part of the last decade with his wife, Donna Simcox Longpre. Together they enjoyed riding motorcycles, sitting on the front porch and taking trips with friends. They complimented each other well and while they both shared the unimaginable loss of losing a spouse – Donna losing her Raymond and Mike losing his Crystal – it made them both try harder to not take each other for granted and accept each other fully with all of their strengths and weaknesses. Donna and her children, Kevin and Nicole, and her grandchildren, welcomed Mike with open arms and embraced each other as family without hesitation. Mike truly was a lucky man.

Mike was many things to many people, but most of all he was himself and he made no apologies for it. While his time on earth was so, so short, he lived it on his own terms. It was a life filled with adventure, family, love, friends, laughs . . . . and at the end, he had the three people that mattered most to him by his side – Donna, Jennifer and Kristen – and they will continue to share his stories, his love and his memories with them.

The family will be holding a gathering of friends from 2 to 4 p.m., Sunday, October 25, 2026 at Sossoman Funeral Home and they invite everyone to stop by and share stories of Mike as it is by remembering him and saying his name that he can and will continue to live on in all of us. Honors will be provided by the Morganton Department of Public Safety, the US Air Force, and the Caldwell County Veterans Honor Guard.

In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to Blue Knights NC XXIII, PO Box 8176, Morganton, NC 28680.

Sossoman Funeral Home and Crematory Center is assisting the family with the arrangements.