How Long created a gathering place for the community at DeKalb megachurch,

Radio broadcaster discusses friendship with pastor.

When prominent radio broadcaster Frank Ski announced his return to Atlanta and to station V-103 last year, one of the first people to give him a ring was Bishop Eddie Long.

The two friends met for breakfast at the Four Seasons and talked about Ski’s plans, how his kids were doing, a little of this and that. But the talk never centered on Long himself.

“He never told me he was sick,” Ski said. “He just asked about me.”

New Birth Missionary Baptist Church on Sunday issued a statement saying Long, who was the church’s senior pastor, “transitioned from this life after a gallant private fight with an aggressive form of cancer.”

His death follows months of speculations but no official statements indicating he was ill.

“The hardest job in the world is to be a church pastor,” Ski said. “Your job every single day is to pray for other people who are hurting. When you are hurting, who prays for you?”

Ski often played snippets of Long’s sermons during his “Inspirational Vitamin” segment.

“He affected and motivated so many people,” he said. “His ability to be a great orator really helped people.”

Ski stood by Long, even when troubling headlines about him circulated after four men sued Long in 2010. The court case was dismissed and settled out of court.

On Sunday, Ski stressed again that he never defended Long’s alleged actions.

“Obviously there were people hurt on both sides,” he said Sunday. “My prayers have always gone out to the people who said they were victims. I wasn’t defending him. I don’t know what happened. I wasn’t there. I know he helped a lot of people. When you’re a friend of somebody, you don’t abandon them.”

Frank Ski played snippets of Eddie Long’s sermons.